Companionship
by Masterob
Summary: When Stella expresses interest in getting to know Lincoln's sisters, that leads to a chance in growth for the two kids' friendship. Lincoln only hopes his sisters won't get too crazy about him bringing a girl over, especially when Lori starts to worry about a trivial fact that can affect Lincoln's love life.
1. Level Up Friendship

It was just another day in Royal Woods, Michigan, as per any other day, the sun was shining down brightly, the birds were whistling, and a two story house in the suburbs was breaking the sound volume, as it normally is when it comes to The Loud House.

It was morning, the kids were getting ready for school, in their own chaotic way. Lori, the oldest sibling, spent half her time texting her boyfriend Bobby while multitasking several other things.

"I think green suits you Boo Boo Bear, that's the color of your outer vest after all," Lori assured. "Come on Bobby we've been over this a hundred times, getting a little tired of this back and fourth."

"Lori! Where's my hairbrush?" the second oldest Leni asked.

"Give me a minute," Lori said, then placed her hand over the speaker. "Did you check the drawer Leni?"

"Why would it be in a pencil?" Leni asked, much to Lori's annoyance.

In another room, the third oldest child Luna was rocking on her guitar as per normal. For her it was a good way to get energized in the morning, and get her siblings energized, assuming they weren't annoyed by all the loud noise. She definitely helps bring meaning to their family name.

"Thank you Loud House!" Luna shouted, as if they were applauding her performance.

"That was great Luna," the fourth oldest Luan said. "Hopefully next time more people will tune in to your next performance." The young aspiring comedian chuckled at her own pun. "Get it?"

"Totally brah," Luna said with a thumbs up.

In another room, the fifth oldest daughter Lynn was doing her morning push ups. "Nintey-seven, nintey-eight, nintey-nine..."

Meanwhile her little sister, the sixth born daughter Lucy was looking through her notebook, trying to think of some rhyming words.

"What word rhymes with 'pain'?" Lucy wondered out loud.

"Easy, 'gain', no pain no gain, that's my favorite rhyme," Lynn said, now doing sit-ups.

"Too easy, and cliched," Lucy said, still tapping her chin.

In another room, the young twins Lola and Lana are preparing for the day in their own ways, Lola brushing her hair while Lana takes care of her reptiles. As Lola finished with the brush and reached for her perfume, she felt something slimy and squishy. She noticed that she had grabbed one of Lana's frogs, freaking out the Pageant Princess and causing her to fall backwards.

"Lana! Get your stupid frog away from my beauty supplies!" Lola demanded.

Lana was quick to grab her pet, "Give him a break, Hops probably wanted to look pretty too."

"The only way to make a frog pretty is if he kisses a princess, and I am NOT kissing that repulsive thing," Lola said.

Lana scoffed, "Well I'm sure he doesn't want to kiss you either."

"What's that supposed to mean!?" Lola shouted. "That frog would be LUCKY to get a kiss from a girl as beautiful as me!"

As the two continued arguing, nearby the second youngest Lisa was doing her usual experiments, attempting to precisely get the right drop of a chemical into a beaker. While she was successful, it started to act up, causing her to act quickly and throw it out the window, a small explosion ensuing afterwards.

"I hope that didn't destroy our neighbor's fence, again," Lisa said. "I'd rather not lose my science privileges for another week."

"Goo goo!" her roommate and baby sister Lily added.

"Right, that would be the least of my worries if the explosion caused a form of injury, fortunately I did not hear any yelps of pain, still, wouldn't hurt to check," Lisa then made her way downstairs.

Finally, in a room made from a linen closest was the only boy in this house full of sisters, born sixth into the family, so right in the middle of eleven children was Lincoln Loud, who was looking through his drawers, attempting to find something.

"Ugh, where's stash of comics I had hidden?" Lincoln asked, looking under his bed. "I hope I didn't throw them out thinking it was trash, I was in a hurry last time I collected garbage, just to avoid missing my show." As he continued to look, he heard a knock on his door. "What is it?"

Lucy entered the room, "Hey Lincoln, mind helping me find a word that rhymes with pain? Aside from gain?"

Lincoln was a little surprised that Lucy actually knocked, normally she would appear out of nowhere. Not wanting to question his luck, he simply answered his sister's question. "Um, try strain."

"Oh, good one," Lucy said, finishing her line. "Thanks Lincoln."

"Thank you for not sneaking up on me this time," Lincoln said as Lucy left. He doesn't mind helping Lucy with her rhyming, he just hates when she pops in out of nowhere, he's almost convinced she can teleport. "Alright, now to just-"

"Lincoln!" Lola shouted, barging into his room, startling the daylights out of him.

"Geez, maybe I was better off being startled by Lucy," Lincoln muttered, focusing his attention on his younger sister. "What is it Lola?"

"Lana's stupid reptiles keep messing up my beauty supplies!" Lola shouted.

"They are not!" Lana defended.

"Lola, I wish I can help but there's not much I can do about Lana's pets, they're not gonna listen to me," Lincoln said.

"But Lana will, tell her to keep her filthy pets under control!" Lola demanded.

"Why me? Can't you ask Lori to help you?" Lincoln asked.

"She's too busy texting her boyfriend, besides when has Lori ever done anything for me without expecting something in return?" Lola pointed out.

"That's kind of harsh to say, I know Lori's bossy but she's not completely selfish," Lincoln said.

"DON'T TOUCH MY NEW SHOES! I TOLD YOU THOSE ARE LITERALLY OFF LIMITS! SO IS MY NEW DRESS! AND MY NEW HAT!" they heard Lori shout from down the hall.

"You were saying?" Lola asked smugly, causing Lincoln to groan.

"Fine, I'll see what I can do, but I'm not making any promises," Lincoln said, standing up and making his way into the twins' room.

"Thank you Linky," Lola said.

Lincoln sighed as he made his way into the room, seeing Lana with her exotic pets. "Lana, what's going on with your pets?"

"Nothing, Lola's making a big deal for no reason, as usual," Lana said.

"I'll show YOU a big deal!" Lola threatened.

"You wanna take this outside!?" Lana asked, trying to look intimidating.

"No fighting please, let's not let this escalate...again," Lincoln pleaded, then turned back to Lana. "Please try to keep your pets on your side of the room, I'm sure you wouldn't want any of Lola's girly things near any of your stuff, would you?"

"Ew, no way, especially that silly glitter of hers. That stuff tastes horrible," Lana said.

Lincoln looked confused, and kind of grossed out. "Why did you eat her glitter?"

"It looked like candy, why did they make something look like candy and taste like trash, and I don't mean the good kind of trash either," Lana said.

"Besides Linky, this is Lana we're talking about, when has she ever needed an excuse to eat something gross," Lola said. "She probably eats more worms than the birds in the backyard!"

"Ok, let's stop talking, I don't want to lose my breakfast before I even have any, just please try to keep your pets in line," Lincoln pleaded.

"Alright fine," Lana said, pouting a bit, though lightened up when Lincoln affectionately patted her head.

Lincoln turned back to Lola, "There, problem solved."

"Thanks Linky!" Lola said, putting on a cute act.

Lincoln sighed in slight annoyance, "Yeah sure, now I need to go find something so-"

"Linky!" he heard Leni call, much to his annoyance.

"If it's not one sister it's another, a brother's work is never done," Lincoln said, then made his way towards Lori and Leni's room. "What is it Leni?" He peeked inside and saw that she was there by herself, much to his relief, he didn't want to risk annoying Lori.

"Sorry to bother you Linky, I'm having trouble finding my hairbrush, I asked Lori to help me, but she was too busy on her cellphone," Leni said. "Then she left to freshen up."

"Where did you last see it?" Lincoln asked.

Leni did her best to think about when she last used her hairbrush, "Um, last I remember, I was trying to get rid of some annoying split ends, then Lori showed me this really cute sweater in a magazine, so of course I had to go see it and it was totes cutes! I mean I felt all warm just looking at it, and it's made from a special cotton so it won't be itchy and-"

"Leni," Lincoln interrupted. "Getting off topic here."

"Right sorry," Leni apologized. "Anyway I got off my bed and went to see what Lori wanted to show me, then I couldn't find my hairbrush anymore."

Lincoln thought about the situation for a moment, "Did you try checking under your bed?"

Leni looked toward her bed, blinking a few times as if trying to register the idea. She went over to her bed and checked underneath. Surely enough, her brush was there, just as Lincoln alluded to. "OMGosh, you're totally right!" She grabbed her brush and hugged it close to her, She then placed it down at the edge of her bed and gave that same hug to her little brother, "Thanks so much Linky, I don't know what I would have done without my brush, can you imagine what my hair would look like?"

"I'm sure you still would have looked just fine," Lincoln said, a little flustered from the hug.

"Ew, no way, my hair would be all tangled and messy, and those split ends, what a nightmare," Leni said. "But it's sweet of you to say that, I can always count on my favorite little brother to make me feel special."

"Leni, I'm your only little brother, I'm your only brother in general," Lincoln said.

"Still my fav, plus being my only brother makes it easier, now favorite sister, that's a tough one," Leni said, then let go of Lincoln. "Do you have a favorite Linky?"

That question did surprise Lincoln, as well as worry him. He hoped to avoid a question like that, knowing that his answer would result in 9 angry sisters. Fortunately for him, Lori had come back from her quick trip to the bathroom, though might lead to another bit of trouble for the young boy.

"What, are you doing, in my room Lincoln!?" the eldest Loud sibling looked displeased that her one rule (rather two depending on the situation), was being violated.

"It's fine Lori, I called him in here," Leni said. "I needed help finding my hairbrush."

"Leni, I have literally one rule, a rule I've already told Lincoln, never come into my room, at least not without my invitation!" Lori said.

"It's my room too Lori," Leni pointed out.

"Yes, but I'm the oldest, so I make the rules," Lori countered, much to Leni's annoyance.

"You're only older than me by one year," Leni said. "I think at least, hold on..." Leni then began to count with her fingers, much to Lincoln and Lori's amazement.

"Never mind it Leni, point is I'm the older one," Lori turned to Lincoln, "As for you, since Leni found her brush, I'm giving you a chance to walk out, unless you want me to assist you in leaving."

Lincoln shook his hands, "No thanks, I can do that myself." Lincoln made his way out the room, glaring slightly at Lori as he left. As he made his way back to his room, he began to mutter, "I can safely say that Lori certainly isn't my favorite right now. Oh well, time to find that comic so I can bring it to-"

"Head's up!" Lincoln on instinct jumped to the floor as a soccer ball went over his head and bounced off a wall back to the one who kicked it, said girl catching it like a goalie, that girl being Lynn.

"Whoo! I'm both offense and defense," Lynn boasted.

"Be careful Lynn, you shouldn't be playing with that in the house, you'll break something," Lincoln said.

"Pfft, when have I ever broken anything?" Lynn asked.

"Is that a trick question!?" they heard Lisa ask from her room.

"Who asked you!?" Lynn shouted, then turned back to Lincoln. "Ok maybe I broke something once, but that was forever ago."

"It was last week!" Lisa again shouted from her room.

"Will you butt out!?" Lynn shouted, then focused back on Lincoln. "Anyway I hardly ever break anything."

"Explain your many casts then!" Lisa once again shouted, really getting on Lynn's nerves.

"Lisa do you always have to talk like your so smart!?" Lynn asked.

"That's just how I naturally talk, don't blame me because your IQ is wasted on sports knowledge!" Lisa called from her room.

"Least I got an atheltic bod," Lynn said, twirling her soccer ball on her foot. "Honestly Lincoln, you could use a sports body too, you spend way too much time reading those dorky comic books."

"Hey, they're not dorky, they're fun and I like them," Lincoln said.

"Never got the enjoyment, I mean seeing some over buffed guy throwing cards really doesn't seem entertaining. Such a shame too, I really think you could be quite the jock if you put your mind and body to it," Lynn said, kicking her ball up and catching it in a finger twirl. "I mean this is probably why it's hard for you to land a girlfriend. You've got the looks, you just need the athleticism."

"I'm fine Lynn, I'm not that eager to get a girfriend right now, I'm not really good with girls anyway," Lincoln said.

"Because you lack confidence, and to gain confidence you need to be athletic, it will boost your self-esteem and soon you'll be surrounded by girls...at least ones not related to you," Lynn said.

"I'll take that into consideration," Lincoln said. "Look I need to go look for something and I don't want to be-"

"Yo bro! Wanna check out this new song I wrote?" Luna asked. "It's my take on a rockin' love song. Normally it's not my thing but I figured I'd give it a try, see what I can come up with. I think it's great but I'd kinda like a guy's opinion on it."

Lincoln sighed, "Luna, I'd love to help, but-"

"He'd rather come see my new material!" Luan said, popping her head from behind Luna. "I've been working on a routine that will leave you in so many tears you'd think you were on an onion farm!"

"Do onions even grow on farms?" Lincoln wondered, then shook it off. "Not the point, look girls, I'd like to help but-"

"Hey Lincoln," Lucy said, suddenly appearing behind Lincoln, scaring the daylights out of him. Looks like he wouldn't be so lucky the second time. "Sorry to bother you again, I need a word to go with 'breeze'."

"I don't know, maybe sneeze, or wheeze?" Lincoln suggested. "Look I really need to-"

"Lincoln! Lana got mud on my side of the room!" he heard Lola call out.

"Did not!" Lana shouted.

"Again!? Didn't I just-" Lincoln was again interrupted.

"Lincoln did you take my phone when you came into my room!?" Lori shouted from her room.

"Why the heck would I take your phone!?" Lincoln shouted.

"Well it's not here! And you WERE in my room without permission!" Lori shouted.

"Leni gave me permission!" Lincoln shouted.

"I meant MY permission! Point is that it's missing! If I don't get in back in the next ten seconds-" Lori was threatening, though got interrupted by Lincoln.

"Oh what are you mad because you can't go two minutes without texting your boyfriend? Quite honestly he could use a break Lori, you can be such an overbearing girlfriend, it's really kind of annoying and I feel sorry for Bobby having to constantly deal with your non-stop texts. Honestly it's like he can't even get a moment's peace even when you're not in the same room as him! I'm surprised you two are even still together with how controlling you are" Lincoln vented, releasing his frustrations.

He regretted that almost immediately as his older sister opened her door, glaring at her little brother. The look in Lori's eyes suggested this was going to be painful for him.

"Might have gone too far there little bro," Luna said.

"You literally have two seconds to give me a good reason not to pulverize you," Lori warned. "One..."

"Um, because I'm your little brother and we love each other enough to know that I wasn't trying to upset you and just give you a little bit of friendly advice like I would do for any of my lovely sisters?" Lincoln said, hoping that'd be good.

"...TWO!" Lori marched angrily towards Lincoln, who's pupils shrank in fear.

"You should probably run," Lucy said to her older brother. Luckily just before Lori got too close, Lisa had run out of the room with a bubbling beaker.

"Watch out! It's gonna blow!" All the siblings rushed into their rooms, especially Lincoln, who made sure to lock his door. He then heard an explosion moments later, to which he checked out his peep hole to make sure Lisa was alright. "I'm alright! My eyebrows will grow back!"

Lincoln sighed in relief, both in Lisa's safety and that he avoided Lori. Though that didn't last long as seconds later he heard loud banging on his door. "Open up twerp! I'm not done with you!"

"Lori don't you think you're overreacting!?" Lincoln asked, desperately pressing against his door to keep Lori out.

"DON'T TELL ME WHAT I'M DOING!" Lori shouted.

Lincoln was worried, he didn't know why Lori was this upset, chances are something might have already annoyed her and he might have just poured more water onto an overflowing glass.

Thankfully this ruckus got the attention of their father. "Lori Loud! Stop that yelling this instant!"

"It's Lincoln's fault!" Lori shouted.

"Whatever it is I'm sure it's nothing you can't talk out normally, now stop intimidating your brother and come down for breakfast!" Lynn Sr called.

Lori groaned in annoyance, "You lucked out twerp!"

She stomped away, Lincoln being thankful for everything distracting Lori from unleashing her rage. "Now to get that comic."

Lincoln went back to his bed, pulling out a mint Ace Savey comic that he wanted to show off for his friends, especially his newer friend Stella.

Since joining the group, Stella has become much better friends with the five boys, despite the awkward start weeks ago. Now they just treat her like one of the guys, not too literally since she's still a girl, but she enjoys doing things they do, and one thing Lincoln wants to show her is his Ace Savey comic, hoping to show off one of his favorite issues of the time he and his sidekick One-Eyed Jack teamed with other heroes to stop an evil alien from collecting the stones of power. Granted it was multi issue, this one had the great fight scenes on Earth.

"I can't wait to show Stella, maybe we can be Ace Savey buddies like me and Clyde, I can even help her get her own costume!" Lincoln said as he placed it in his backpack. "Now to get downstairs before Lynn eats my breakfast again."

Lincoln made his way downstairs, quickly taking his seat at the table. Their father had made pancakes that morning, Lincoln made sure to grab plenty before his sisters hogged them all.

"Alright, dad's famous pancakes," Lincoln said, attempting to grab some syrup, though Lori had grabbed it first, still on the phone. Lincoln looked somewhat annoyed, and had a slight suspicion she might have done that on purpose. "Um, Lori..."

"Can it twerp," Lori said, pouring the syrup on her pancakes.

Lynn Sr sighed, "Lori, maybe not be on the phone during breakfast...and please pay attention, you're wasting all the syrup."

"Whoops, my mistake," Lori said, leaving only a few drops of syrup left, then she slid it toward Lincoln, who was even more annoyed.

"Thanks..." Lincoln said sarcastically, trying to squeeze out as much syrup as he could.

"Hang on sport, I'll get another bottle," Lynn Sr said. "Hopefully this one doesn't get wasted."

"Thanks dad," Lincoln said, glaring slightly at Lori.

"You better not be eyeballing me Lincoln," Lori warned, not taking her eyes off her pancakes.

Lincoln looked away, not wanting to incur Lori's wrath. Luna noticed this and sighed in annoyance, "You really need to relax Lori, it's not good for your vibes."

"Uh-huh," Lori said, barely paying attention to Luna, much to the rocker's annoyance.

Leni then nudged Lincoln to get his attention. Speaking softly, she explained Lori's behavior to her little brother. "Lori's been a little stressed out lately, so try to be extra careful not to annoy her."

"What's got her upset this time?" Lincoln asked.

"I'm not sure, I think it has to do with Bobby, they've been talking a lot lately and Lori seemed worried about something," Leni said.

Lincoln sighed, "Alright, I'll try to be sympathetic, but she can still try to lighten up."

Lynn finished up her pancakes, letting out a loud belch afterwards, much to the annoyance of her siblings. "Man that was tasty."

"Have a little class Lynn!" Lola said. "Sometimes you're more of a boy than Lincoln is."

"Someone's gotta show some masculinity, since we hardly get it from the only brother, am I right?" Lynn asked while laughing, getting an annoyed glare from Lincoln.

"Ha, ha, real funny Lynn," Lincoln said.

"Oh relax, I'm just messing around Lincoln, don't be such a girl about it," Lynn said, then started laughing some more.

"Leave the jokes to Luan will you?" Lincoln said.

"Yeah, suppose I outed you from your sports career?" Luan asked, then started laughing herself. "Get it?"

"Eh, barely," Lana said. "I mean I think I know what you meant but-"

"Guess I strikeout when it comes to sports puns," Luan said, then laughed again. "Get it?"

"A little better," Lana said.

"Seriously Linc, take a joke, you know we're only goofing around," Lynn said.

Lincoln sighed in annoyance, just another morning, especially with Lynn. It's like she realizes she says and acts kinda cruel. Lincoln of course knows that despite her attitude, Lynn loves him tremendously, as he loves her, he just wishes she could be a bit more aware of what she's saying.

After his dad got him the second bottle of maple syrup, Lincoln finally got to enjoy his breakfast. Later the school bus came, the kids boarding it and making their way over to the respective schools.

Come lunchtime at Royal Woods Elementary, Lincoln was sitting at the table with his four friends, Rusty, Zack, Liam, and his best friend, Clyde McBride.

"You got the comic Lincoln?" Rusty asked.

"Right in my backpack, took me all morning to get it," Lincoln said.

"Why? Did you lose it?" Zach asked.

"No, my sisters needed my help, one thing after another," Lincoln said.

"Gotta love your sisters," Clyde said. "What was it this time?"

"The usual, breaking up a fight between Lola and Lana, Lynn giving me her advice on life, heling Leni find something she lost, the latter being risky because I had to go into her room," Lincoln said.

"Why? Too girly?" Rusty asked.

"It's not that, she shares a room with Lori, and she can get really irritated if you go into her room without her knowing, even if Leni invites you," Lincoln said.

"Ah Lori, even at her most dangerous she is a peace of art," Clyde said, hearts in his eyes.

"Anyway I might need to avoid her for a while, according to Leni, she's not in the best mood, she's going out all day tomorrow and I think the excitement of seeing Bobby mixed with the stress of making sure everything goes right is making her unbearable right now," Lincoln said. "Didn't help that I got busted by Lori after helping Leni."

"I take it she wasn't too happy when she found you in her room," Liam said.

"Let's just say I got lucky, she looked ready to pulverize me," Lincoln said.

"Anyway at least you got the comic," Cylde said. "Now all we have to do is just need to wait for Stella."

"Here she comes now," Liam said, gesturing to the young girl in question.

Stella approached the group, offering a friendly smile and wave to the boys, "Hi guys."

"Hi Stella," Lincoln greeted.

"So, did you bring that comic you were telling me about?" Stella asked.

"Sure did, I got it right here," Lincoln said, pulling it out for the others to behold. "The cool part is that tomorrow they're showing the movie version of this comic on TV, it's a special viewing with an extended cut! Me and Clyde are gonna see it tomorrow, it's gonna be the best! Out of all the Ace Savey comics, this story arc is my favorite, and to see a version of the movie that's too long even for most movie theaters, it's a total dream!"

"It's all they've been talking about the last two weeks," Liam said. "I've never seen Lincoln this excited, not since they announced that huge game coming to The Snap."

"You mean the one with all the popular video game characters coming together? Who wouldn't be?" Clyde asked.

"I like seeing the differences between comics and movies, most fans don't like changes, but me, I like seeing how differently things can go, plus it leaves it unpredictable," Lincoln said, then turned to Clyde. "What do yo say buddy, ready for tomorrow."

"I would be..." Clyde began, "But..."

"But what?" Lincoln asked, not really liking where this is going.

"Thing is, me and my dads were gonna go visit my nana, she got this really cute puppy and tomorrow I get to go play with it!" Clyde said.

"But Clyde, we've been planning this since they announced the TV showing! It's the special extended cut! Who knows when they'll have another showing!" Lincoln said.

"I know, but my nana really wants me to come, plus I'm sure they'll have another showing, maybe with more extended cuts," Clyde said.

"Yeah, but we were also gonna to to Gus's Game and Grub afterwards, they have that new Kart Racing game, I figured we could break it in after the movie," Lincoln said.

"Maybe another time buddy," Clyde said.

Lincoln sighed in disappointment, "Oh well, some things can't be helped."

"Well, you can still do that stuff at least, just by yourself," Liam pointed out.

"Duh, of course I can, but I'd like to have a friend with me, makes it more fun," Lincoln said. "I mean if one of you guys want to come, then you're more than welcome to."

Liam, Zach and Rusty glanced nervously at each other, all feeling the same worry. Liam spoke on behalf of the three boys. "Uh, Lincoln, you know yer our friend, and we really like hanging out with you, but..."

"Your sisters are insane!" Zach interjected, getting a slight glare from Liam and Rusty. "What? You're both thinking the same thing!"

Lincoln furrowed his brow at that, "My sisters are not that bad, sure they can go a little overboard with things, but it's just how they are. I've gotten used to it, mostly, and Clyde's gotten used to it as well."

"Pretty sure he endures it because he has a crush on Lori," Liam pointed out.

"Actually I think all his sisters are pretty neat in their own way," Clyde said.

"Maybe you can tolerate it, but they're just out of control," Zach said.

"Ah don't want another makeover," Liam said, remembering the time Lola applied her make-up product the last time he went to Lincoln's house for a sleepover.

"I still remember having to constantly rebuild our science project, just because your little sister had a crush on my brother," Rusty pointed out. "Seriously, they couldn't think to just let me know? Or you?"

"My sisters are stubborn when it comes to romance, plus they don't trust a guy's opinion on the subject," Lincoln said.

"Girls are like that," Stella said. "Though the five of you kinda proved their point the first time you met me."

Lincoln sheepishly rubbed his head, "Well you're not wrong."

"We're sorry to tell you this Lincoln, but your sisters kind of scare us," Zach said. "We can only imagine what it's like for you being in a house full of so many girls."

"I'm used to it, might have cost me most of my masculinity, but I still wouldn't trade it for the world," Lincoln said.

"That's so sweet of you to say Lincoln," Stella said. "You're lucky to have so many sisters, and they do seem nice, even if I don't see them much. Don't any of them like comics though? Maybe ask one of them to spend time with you."

"Not really, it's not their thing, I've even tried in the past, they're not interested, they just like their own thing too much," Lincoln said. "It's amazing how diverse a house of eleven siblings are."

"Each of your sisters seem to have a different personality," Stella said. "Kind of wish I could see them more often."

That lit a lightbulb in Lincoln's head, "Duh! Why didn't I think of that! The answer was right in front of me!"

"What answer?" Stella asked, to which Lincoln suddenly grabbed her shoulders, looking her right in the eyes.

"You Stella, would you like to come over tomorrow? It can be the two of us watching the movie, reading comics and going to Gus's Game n Grub!" Lincoln said.

Stella looked a little surprised by Lincoln's request, "You and me? Well it wouldn't be the first time we've hung out one on one, but I don't think I've ever been to your house before. The thought makes me kind of nervous."

"Don't you want to get to know my sisters better?" Lincoln asked.

"For some odd reason," Zach joked, though received a quick glare from Lincoln before the boy focused back on his friend.

"I do want to get to know them better, but.. without the rest of the guys I won't feel as confident being at your house," Stella said.

Lincoln turned to them, "You guys are still welcome to come."

"We'll think about it," Liam said.

"Maybe once I check my medical insurance," Zach said.

Lincoln sighed in annoyance, he really hates the reputation his sisters have. They're not perfect, but he knows they're a lot better than most people give them credit for. He hardly admits it out loud, but he loves them very much, even at their most irritating.

"I hope you consider it as well Stella, it'd be nice for you to meet my sisters," Lincoln said.

Stella did a half shrug. "Well, I suppose it couldn't hurt, plus I'd get to know you a little better as well. Alright, count me in."

"Sweet," Lincoln said, then focused his attention to Clyde. "You're ok with this, right buddy?"

"Huh? Of course, why wouldn't I be?" Clyde asked.

"Because you always get jealous whenever Lincoln does something fun without you," Rusty pointed out.

"What!? No I don't!" Clyde insisted.

"You were like that when we first met!" Zach said. "You and Liam got jealous when me and Rusty started hanging out with Lincoln!"

"You did start hyperventilating a bunch of times," Liam pointed out.

"Come on guys, that was in the past, I promise I won't get jealous of Lincoln and Stella," Clyde insisted. "I wouldn't want my buddy to be deprived of a great day because I'm not there." Clyde then muttered, "Plus it's only one day."

"As long as you're fine with it buddy," Lincoln said, then turned to Stella. "It's settled then, the movie starts tomorrow at 12:30, come over around then," Lincoln said.

"I'll be there," Stella said.

"Oh, and just a fair warning, when you come over, my sisters might assume that we're on a date, so try not to worry too much when they try setting a mood and just ignore it," Lincoln said.

"Does that happen a lot when you bring a girl over?" Stella asked.

"Well before you, the only girl I regularly hung out with was Ronnie Anne Santiago, but yeah they did that a lot with her as well," Lincoln said.

"Especially since Lori dates her older brother Bobby," Liam said.

"Ronnie Anne huh?" Stella asked. "You've mentioned her a few times, so you two never-um what's wrong with Clyde?"

Lincoln turned to see Clyde angrily gritting his teeth, then turned back to Stella, "That happens whenever someone mentions Lori dating Bobby, since Clyde has a crush on her."

"I thought him moving away would help my chances, but he got lucky," Clyde said. "It won't last much loner, after all she sees me more than she sees him, sooner or later she'll want what's already here." Clyde then pointed to himself, "This guy."

Stella looked a little freaked out by Clyde's odd behavior, "Uh huh...Anyway so you and Ronnie Anne were just friends as well?"

"Uh, sometimes we were, sometimes we weren't, it got really confusing," Lincoln said. "I mean right now we're just friends, I don't think she's interested in dating me."

"Well don't count yourself out," Stella said. "Who knows, maybe she likes you, but she's not ready for dating yet."

"I really don't know, I try not to think about it," Lincoln said. "Anyway, let me show you that comic." Lincoln grabbed the comic and the six friends started looking it over, already debating all potential changes for better or for worse.

Later on Lincoln had just gotten home, feeling really excited about the next day. Of course he had to deal with all the chaos when he got home but he was in too good of a mood.

Lynn was the first to notice his mood, "You're happy, what did they release a new comic or something?"

"Even better, I've got a fun day planned for tomorrow!" Lincoln said.

"Oh that, you're gonna spend all afternoon watching some dorky Superhero movie, because watching guys in tights is somehow entertaining to you," Lynn said.

"Hey that movie is one of the most popular movies in ages, you're missing out just because you have a lousy opinion on comic books," Lincoln said.

"Yeah because laying around reading books with pictures is so entertaining," Lynn said.

"Whatever, anyway Clyde can't make it tomorrow, he's going to see his grandmother," Lincoln said. "So my plans are changing a bit."

"So what, you're going to join him or something? That doesn't sound fun," Lynn said.

"No, I'm still catching the movie and the arcades later, but this time with Stella," Lincoln explained.

"Stella? Wait you mean that new girl?" Lynn asked.

"Yeah, she's coming over tomorrow, so everything me and Clyde were gonna do, I'm gonna do with her instead," Lincoln said.

"Hold on," Lynn interjected. "You mean to tell me that you finally got a girl to come over to this house, and you're going to spend the day watching comic movies and playing video games!?"

"Uh, yeah, same stuff I do with Clyde," Lincoln said.

Lynn facepalmed at her brother's response, "You dingus, you can't do stuff with a girl that you do with a guy!"

"Huh? What's the big deal? I used to do stuff like this with Ronnie Anne," Lincoln said.

"And where is Ronnie Anne?" Lynn smugly asked. "All the way in the city!"

Lincoln squinted his eyes in a glare at his older sister, "That was beyond her control, also for the record, when I go visit her and her family, we still play video games and do all that 'guy stuff' as you would probably call it, so your argument's weak."

"Fine, so she's that one girl who likes that lame stuff, doesn't mean all girls tolerate it, or do you still think you're an expert on girls?" Lynn teased.

"I at least know my friend, and she wanted to come over, so do me a favor, and don't screw anything up, last thing I need is another friend who doesn't like coming over because they think my sisters are insane," Lincoln said.

"Oh, so now it's our fault you can barely bring a friend here besides Clyde?" Lynn asked.

"Kinda!" Lincoln stated. "By the way, why are you so against the idea of a girl liking comics and video games!? You're a girl who likes sports, that's normally a guy thing!"

Lynn got in Lincoln's face, "Hey, watch what you say about sports Stinkon! Being an athlete is way more respectable than being a comic book nerd!"

Lincoln rolled his eyes at that, Lynn, as usual when it comes to his sisters, was being hypocritical. "Look, I don't have the time or patience to argue with you on this, now I need to let the rest of the sisters know about Stella, hopefully you'll all maintain a good behavior."

"Hey, we know girls Stinkon, don't act all smug just because one's doing a pity date with you," Lynn said.

"H-hey! First it's not a date, second what you mean 'pity'?" Lincoln asked, his patience wearing thin.

"No girl wants to do a comic date with a guy unless she feels pity towards him, you want to see a movie, that's fine, but getting into your comics and video games isn't an ideal date," Lynn said. "Also, say what you will about sports, but girls like a jock, that's why more girls are getting into sports, helps them be closer with the type of guys they want, a strong willed guy who grew past petty video games and comics."

"Three of Lori's classmates like comics too! And, one of them is a girl!" Lincoln countered.

"Yeah, and how many of them have dates? I'm not saying all girls hate comics, they're just so rare," Lynn said. "It's like I told you this morning, you have the looks to get a girl, but until you actually grow up and stop clinging to this useless stuff, it ain't gonna happen." Lynn placed her hand on Lincoln's shoulder, "If I'm tough, it's because I care, baby brother."

Lincoln's patience was officially at an end, "Look, she's already told me she's not interested, so I don't have anything to lose!" Lincoln took a breath to keep himself from getting any more frustrated. "I have some schoolwork to do, so if you need me, I'll be in my room." He then moved past his older sister, having enough of her mouth. "But do me a favor, and don't need me."

As he went upstairs, Lynn scoffed to herself, "Lincoln so needs help with girls."

"What's this about Lincoln and girls?" she heard Luan ask. Lynn turned to face her sister, though saw that Luna, Lucy and the twins were also present.

"Lincoln's bringing a girl over tomorrow to watch some movie," Lynn said.

"Wait, little bro's bringing a girl over? Righteous, who is it? Anyone we know?" Luna asked.

"The new girl Stella, they're gonna spend the day watching comic movies and playing video games," Lynn said.

"Comics books and video games?" Lola asked. "That's so lame, why would he put her through something like that?"

"Because it's 'What he does with Clyde' as he puts it," Lynn said.

"I don't think little bro should be treating this girl like another guy, he'll be friend-zoned for life" Luna said.

"That's what I told him, but of course, Lincoln refuses to listen to reason. He's yet to learn that when it comes to girls, he needs us to keep him straightened out," Lynn said.

"Are you sure? Lincoln's a lot more capable than we give him credit for, so long as he has the confidence," Lucy said.

"She's right, sometimes our meddling has backfired, plus he does know this girl better than any of us, maybe he's on to something," Luan said.

"Come on, this is Lincoln we're talking about, he's lost without us," Lynn said.

"Well he is the man with a plan," Lucy said. "I don't think we should manipulate things, Lincoln should try this on his own."

"Well you said yourself he needs confidence, how often has Lincoln had confidence?" Lynn asked. "Anytime it seems like he's growing a backbone, he crumbles down. Remember how quickly he shifted gears when it came to Lori?"

"It's Lori, even you can't take her when she's mad," Lucy said.

"Yeah she'd rock you like a hurricane," Luna said.

"Look, I'm not saying we need to control every little thing he does, but he still needs a little push in the right direction," Lynn said. "It's like sports, yeah you need to rely on your individual skill, but you still need a coach to make sure you stay on the right path."

"Lynn's right, I know our bro's smart, but I don't think I could forgive myself if I sat back and let him blow it with a girl," Luna said.

"Well how do we help Lincoln then?" Luan asked.

"Let's try to keep an eye on things, one thing he had a point on is that if we come on too strong, it could scare her off like the rest of his wussy friends," Lynn said.

"I brought out that one boy's glow, and he didn't even show me any gratitude," Lola said, crossing her arms in a pout.

"Pfft, who can blame him," Lana said, much to Lola's annoyance.

"What time is she coming by tomorrow?" Luan asked.

"Around noon I think, now I'm thinking we relay this plan to the rest of the sisters," Lynn said.

"Good idea," Lana said. "But I don't think we'll have any help from Lori since she's going to see Bobby tomorrow in the city."

"Shame, she's got the most experience when it comes to romance," Luna said.

"We'll manage without her, heck back when Lori and Bobby first started dating, me and Luan were the ones keeping an eye on things," Lynn said.

"We were her pair of eyes in her paradise," Luan said, giggling a bit. "Get it?"

"Weak," Lynn said, much to Luan's annoyance. "But back to my point, Luan and I were the ones who helped Lori out, now we help out Lincoln," Lynn said.

"Is he even interested romantically in this girl?" Lucy asked. "They could just be friends."

"Ugh, Lucy, who's side are you on here? Don't you want Lincoln to get a girl?" Lynn asked.

"Of course I do, but it will mean nothing if he doesn't desire it. To Luan's earlier point, sometimes we cause him grief when we try to help. Remember we did goad him into kissing Ronnie Anne, and that ended with him getting hurt," Lucy said.

"Oh like you didn't enjoy the punch, I saw you smiling to yourself when Lincoln walked around with a black eye," Lynn pointed out, shaming Lucy a bit. She did find humor from the incident, though she didn't find humor in how angry her brother was with her afterwards.

"Let's just play it cool and keep things mellow, work through it naturally," Luna said. "Stella seems like a cool chick, it'd be great if she and Linc hooked up."

"It'd be really Stellar," Luan said, then giggled to herself. "Get it?" Her question was met with a brief groan.

"So it's official, together we'll help mold Lincoln into the man this girl can sink her teeth into," Lynn said.

"I like sinking teeth into things," Lucy said with a small smile.

"All in?" Lynn asked, putting her hand out. The other sisters quickly gazed at each other and nodded, putting their hands in as well.

"All in!" they said.


	2. Meeting the Sisters

The following day was a typical Saturday Morning for the Loud Family. No school allowed the sisters to sleep in a little, and everyone was ready to do their favorite activities.

For Lincoln, 12:30 could not come sooner, he was really excited to spend some time with his friend and enjoy that movie together. He already let his sisters know about Stella, then after enduring all their teasing they promised not to do anything to bother her.

At least, they'll do their best to not make it seem like they were gonna bother him. After talking to Lincoln yesterday, Lynn rounded up all the sisters to make plans, all of them wanting this get together with Stella to be a hit.

Lori was fully aware of Stella as well, wishing could be around, but she made a promise to Bobby, so she took the time to remind Lincoln of something important before she left on her trip.

"Just remember Lincoln, even if it's not a date, be absolutely nice to her, you never know what could happen. I expect you to be a gentleman to this girl Lincoln, make her feel at home."

Lincoln was grateful at least one of his sisters was a little less intense about this, though this added a little extra worry for him, now he had to make sure Stella enjoyed herself, otherwise Lori wouldn't be too happy.

As 12:30 neared, Lincoln took the time to get everything ready, making popcorn, setting up snacks and drinks. He also took the time to grab the comics to read along to the movie, placing them neatly on the table in front of the TV.

"Everything's going according to plan, now I just wait for-" suddenly the doorbell rang, Lincoln sprinting to the door to greet his friend. "Stella!"

"Hi Lincoln," Stella greeted. "May I come in?"

"That's why you're here after all," Lincoln said, widening the door. "Please, step into my home."

Stella giggled a bit, "Well aren't you a good host so far." She walked inside, gazing around Lincoln's house, "Wow, I should come by more often, your home looks really pretty."

"Huh, don't get that often, but thanks," Lincoln said. "Come on, movie's gonna start soon, I got all the snacks we'll need too."

As they approached the couch, little did the two know, all the sisters were observing from the kitchen.

"Looks like our guest is here," Lisa said. "What's your plan Lynn?"

"Well first we need to gauge this girl's personality, from what we've seen she's not too girly but I'd like to get some more intel," Lynn said.

"Did you set all this up without a strategy?" Luna asked.

"Of course not, I planned for every situation. You don't go into a sport with only one potential game plan, you map things out as you go along," Lynn said. "Of course I have some basics down like any good coach would, but the real planning comes from what we see on the field."

"How would we factor into this?" Lisa asked.

"The first idea is constantly checking up on Lincoln," Lynn said. "One of us needs to pass by the Living Room every so often. Lincoln might get suspicious if one of us hangs out there too long, but as long as we play it cool, he probably won't suspect a thing."

"I'll be more than happy to grace Stella with my appearance," Lola said.

"Speaking of which, maybe we should go greet her," Luna suggested. "If she's gonna be seeing us all day we should at least make sure she remembers our names."

"Good point, what sisters would we be if we weren't properly introduced to his potential girlfriend," Lynn said.

As Lincoln sat down next to Stella, his sisters began to come around the couch, getting the attention of the two. Of course Lincoln expected this, he's just glad he got to Stella before the sisters surrounded her at the door.

"Hey Lincoln, we heard that your friend came, so we wanted to say 'hi'," Lynn said, offering a friendly smile.

Lincoln knew there was more to this than Lynn let on, but Stella did want to get to know his sisters, so this was the best opportunity. "Alright, want me to introduce you or..."

"I think I remember most of their names," Stella said, then pointed to Luna. "Now you're Luna right? The rocker?"

"You got it brah," Luna said with a snap of her finger. "Glad you remembered."

"You're easy since you have moon shaped earings, and Luna also means 'moon', it reminds me of when Lincoln said you got the skills to rock someone to the moon," Stella said.

"Aw, you're too sweet little bro," Luna said, rubbing Lincoln's head.

Stella looked to the twins, "You're Lana and Lola, I see you both at school." She turned to the goth girl, "I've also seen you as well, you're Lucy."

"Well of course she knows me," Lola said. "It makes it easier when I'm famous."

"Lincoln says you do a lot of pageants, he even coaches you sometimes, he seems really proud of your work," Stella said.

Lola turned to Lincoln, "Bragging about me big brother? I don't blame you though, you know you're lucky to have me as a little sister."

Lincoln rolled his eyes and whispered to Stella, "You're adding to her ego."

At the same time, Lana turned whispered to Lola, "We're trying to get this girl to like Lincoln, not you!"

Lola sighed, "And I'm lucky to have Lincoln, he's a great coach, and an even better brother."

Lincoln blushed in embarrassment, "Come on Lola."

Stella giggled a bit, then turned to Lucy, "Lincoln says you're a poet, and you're pretty deep."

"I owe a lot to Lincoln, he helps me a lot," Lucy said.

Stella turned to Lincoln, "Wow, you're a very attentive big brother." Lincoln sheepishly smiled as Stella turned to Lisa. "I've also seen you at school, you attend the Kindergarten, you're Lisa right?"

"Correct, I presume my elder brother has told you of my scientific feats?" Lisa asked.

"Yeah, he even made a joke about you attending college conventions and giving lectures," Stella said.

Lisa adjusted her glasses, "I assure you that his statements about my academic lectures are factual and not a form of jest."

Stella scratched her head, "Uh, mind repeating that?"

Lisa sighed, "Lincoln wasn't joking, I do give lectures. Don't let my age fool you, my intelligence has nearly no limits."

"Lisa's the smartest person in our family, probably in all of Royal Woods," Lincoln assured.

"Well that might not be far from the truth," Lisa bragged, then received a nudge from Lana. "Of course Lincoln's very intelligent himself, statistically speaking if I weren't in this house, Lincoln would most likely be the most intelligent."

"Well I wouldn't say the most intelligent," Lincoln said, sheepishly rubbing his head.

"You constantly get good grades in school, not to mention all the planning you do, such as looking for the Sweet Spot in Vanzilla or trying to get us to take the perfect picture," Lisa said. "That requires a large degree of planning and intelligence, don't underestimate your academics Lincoln, embrace your intelligence."

"Huh, lot's of planning huh? Now I see why the guys call you 'The Man with a Plan'," Stella said to Lincoln.

"Wait, other kids actually call him that?" Lynn asked.

"Of course they do!" Lincoln insisted, getting a slight giggle from the other girls.

Stella looked back to the group, focusing on the comedian, "You're Luan, Lincoln showed me your Luan Out Loud videos, you're so funny, I couldn't stop laughing at your dairy puns."

"Really? I thought I was _milking_ those jokes!" Luan said, laughing to herself. "Get it?"

Stella chuckled as well, "Wow, you're so much funnier in person, I hope I talk to you more often."

"My little brother can be the _Linc_ to our own friendship," Luan said, giggling to herself.

Stella giggled some more, wiping a tear from her eye as she looked over the rest of the sisters. "Now...the last couple will be tricky, I know one of you is named 'Leni'." She turned to Lynn, "That wouldn't be you would it?"

"I'm Lynn," the athlete answered, little annoyed that she was the first to not be recognized.

"Oh right, Lincoln said one of you had the same name as his father," Stella said, then looked to the oldest blond, "So are you Leni? Or is it Lori?"

"I'm Leni," the elder sister answered, then looked to the rest of her sisters. "Um, I am Leni right?"

"Yes Leni," the other sisters said in monotone.

Stella turned to Lincoln, getting a shrug from the boy. Lincoln did mention to her once that Leni wasn't too bright.

"Well I commend you for getting most of us right," Lisa said. "It took Clyde some time to know all our names, mainly since he spent most of his time going gaga for Lori."

"I'm pretty sure none of Lincoln's other friends know all our names at all," Lana said.

Lincoln was about to protest, but then had to wonder, did his other friends know all his sisters' names?

"So I only see eight sisters, where are the other two?" Stella asked.

"Lily's taking a nap," Lisa answered. "As for our eldest sister Lori, she's in the city visiting her boyfriend Bobby with our father unit."

Stella whispered to Lincoln, "Does she always talk like that?"

"We're hoping she outgrows it, then again we Louds have had the same personality since birth so it's a bit of a long shot," Lincoln said.

Stella turned back to the sisters, "Well I kinda wished I could have met her, formally at least. She's the sister I've heard about the most, mainly from Clyde."

"Not like you'll never have the chance little dudette," Luna said. "She's coming back tonight anyway, not sure if you'll be here that long."

"Me and Lincoln are going to Gus's Game n Grub after this, and he's taking me home from there, so probably not," Stella said.

"Ooh, walking the girl home little bro?" Luna teased. "What a little gentleman."

Lincoln rolled his eyes at the teasing, thankfully the movie was about to start, so now it can finally be him and Stella. "Alright, Ace Savvy time." Lincoln grabbed his comics, "We'll talk to you after the movie ends."

"Sure thing, if you need us, just let us know," Luna said.

"We're not too far away, call us for anything," Lola said.

Lincoln suspiciously squinted his eyes at his suddenly generous little sister, "Riiiight."

The sisters all walked past Lincoln, leaving him and Stella to the movie.

"Your sisters seem really nice," Stella said. "You're lucky to have so many."

"I feel that way too, having a lot of sisters who will always be there when you need them is very reassuring," Lincoln said. "Even if they might meddle more often than they should."

"At least you're never lonely," Stella said.

"Oddly enough, there are times I feel alone, maybe it's because I'm the only one without a roommate, probably why I'm usually the odd one out when it comes to what we all like to do," Lincoln said. "But it's nothing I can't live with, and there are way more pros than cons to having ten sisters, at least for me."

"Maybe if you relayed that to your friends more often, they'd have no problem coming over and wouldn't have to worry that much," Stella suggested.

"I've tried, but it's their loss," Lincoln said. "Ooh, we're missing the beginning, the action starts straight away here."

Stella took notice of one of the comics, "I've always noticed that costumes look different in movies than in comics."

"Makes sense, some designs aren't meant for movies," Lincoln said.

As the two continued to talk, the sisters listened in from upstairs, making sure the date started off just fine.

"Looks like little bro's got this under control so far," Luna said.

"They've only been alone not even two minutes, let's not let our guard down," Lynn said.

"She seems like a really nice girl, and Linky's a really sweet boy, I think they'll be fine," Leni said.

"Lincoln's also a bit of a screw up, he nearly blew it on his date with Ronnie Anne, at least that's what I was told," Lynn said.

"By who? Lori didn't say anything," Luna said.

"I heard it from Lola," Lynn said, as the sisters glared at the young Pageant Princess.

"Hey I heard it from some boys that Ronnie Anne slapped Lincoln because he kissed her or something," Lola said.

Something about that seemed to upset some of the other sisters.

"That's like the second time I've heard about her hitting Lincoln, really hope that wasn't a regular thing," Luna said, sounding really annoyed.

"Well Lincoln didn't seem bothered, maybe he likes rough girls," Lola said. "I mean growing up in a house like this, he's probably used to girls being aggressive."

That set a somber tone for most of the sisters there.

"Ooh, I hope we're not setting a bad example for him," Leni said, voicing the concerns of a couple other sisters.

"Lincoln's intelligent enough to know that our behavior isn't reflective of all girls, especially after that Girl Guru fiasco," Lisa said.

"Thankfully he _guru_ out of that mindset," Luan said, laughing a bit as the other sisters groaned in annoyance.

"Anyway it's already obvious the two have a good enough bond that Lincoln has accurately described us to his friends to the point where she knows most of our names and our hobbies," Lisa said.

"Not enough if she couldn't figure out my name," Lynn said.

"Pfft, so she missed one name, we're a house of eleven siblings, think my friends know all of your names?" Lola said. "Roxanne actually mixed up Lisa and Lucy a couple of times."

"She did what?" Lucy asked, somewhat surprised.

"Oh get over it, I've got it harder being a twin," Lola said.

"Yeah, there's nothing worse than being compared to Lola," Lana said, much to Lola's annoyance.

"What was that!?" Lola shouted, getting in Lana's face, the other twin not backing down.

"Cool it you two," Luna said. "Point is, she's clearly interested in at least trying to get to know us, but the point here is for Stella to get to know Lincoln."

"She already knows Linky though," Leni said. "He wouldn't invite a stranger over."

Luna was tempted to remind her of the time Lincoln did just that, but she didn't want the topic to derail, again. "What I mean is, she knows Lincoln as a classmate, and they hang out at school, and maybe occasionally after school. But it's obvious Lincoln wants more one on one time with her, and the more they enjoy spending time together, the more she'll want to come by, thus this friendship as our little bro calls it can evolve into romance."

"Our game plan is to make sure nothing goes wrong," Lynn said. "This is a golden opportunity for us, Lincoln barely brings girls over, so we don't always have a chance to keep an eye out and make sure he doesn't do anything stupid."

"Hey he did just fine when Ronnie Anne lived in Royal Woods," Leni said.

"And he'll do even better with our help," Lynn said. "Just make sure you follow my plans exactly."

"When did you become such a love expert?" Lana asked.

"Call it instinct," Lynn said. "All girls have it. Now here's the game plan…"

Lynn whispered the plan to her sisters, each of them now knowing their role in her self described cunning plan.

A half hour passed with Lincloln and Stella being really into the movie. On occasion Lincoln would open his comic and point out a cool detail, whether it's something completely accurate or a change he found interesting.

During this Lynn watched from the kitchen, then glanced at the twins and gestured with her hand for them to do their thing. The twins nodded and reached grabbed a teddy bear by it's arms and started pulling at it.

"It's mine! Give it!" Lola shouted.

"No! I want it!" Lana shouted.

The two argued and pulled at the stuffed animal, leading into the room where Lincoln and Stela were watching the movie. This arguing was noticed by Stella right away, and nudged Lincoln to get his attention. "Looks like there's a little issue."

"Huh?" Lincoln turned his attention to his sisters. "Hey, what's going on?'

"Lana won't give me back my teddy bear!" Lola shouted.

"I just need it for a minute!" Lana insisted.

Lincoln looked a little annoyed, not only were his sisters arguing, they were doing this while he had a friend over, during a really awesome movie. Thankfully this part of the movie was slow so nothing too exciting was happening. Plus he had a duty as their big brother to settle this dispute.

"Lana, did you ask Lola if you could play with her Teddy Bear?" Lincoln asked.

"Well...no, but I just needed it quickly!" Lana insisted.

"You still need to ask Lola first, suppose she tried to borrow your tools without asking?" Lincoln asked.

Lana chuckled a bit, "Like she'd ever be able to use my tools." This comment seemed to annoy Lola a tad bit.

Lincoln didn't look amused, "Lana..."

Lana sighed, "Fine, I get your point." Lana turned to her twin, "Sorry about that Lola."

Lola grumbled a bit, still annoyed at Lana's crack a moment ago, "Fine..."

"And Lola, remember to share your toys with Lana once in a while, have some faith she won't break any of them," Lincoln said.

Lola started laughing at the statement, "Lana not breaking things? Bit of a fantasy world there Linky."

This time Lana seemed annoyed, "What's that suppose to mean? I don't break things, I fix them."

"Right, with the tools that I apparently can't handle," Lola said. "If your feeble mind can comprehend them, then I think I'm good."

"You mean like Pageant shows? The thing I won on my first try!?" Lana asked with a smug grin.

"That's because Lincoln taught you how to be exactly like me, otherwise you would have failed in the first round!" Lola shouted.

"Lana, Lola..." Lincoln said, hoping to get their attention before they started fighting again.

"I won using my actual talent, not the girly stuff you like to do!" Lana said.

"Seemed more like a pity prize, that and my reputation was grand enough to cover for your sorry excuse of a performance, like anyone really wanted to see you scratching your butt in the rhythm of a frog croaking," Lola said.

"Are they always like this?" Stella asked Lincoln, looking a little concerned herself.

Lana got in Lola's face, "You wanna go Princess!?"

"Bring it on Grease Monkey!" Lola shouted.

Lincoln then tried to separate them again, holding his arms between them. It wouldn't be so easy this time since the twins weren't faking the argument this time, not that he knew they were faking at all.

Stella looked concerned seeing her friend attempting to separate these two aggressive girls, "Um, do you need help Lincoln?"

"No, I'm good," Lincoln insisted. "Besides keeping them separated isn't exactly the safest thing to do."

Fortunately Lincoln would receive help in the form of Luna and Luan, each of them grabbing a twin and pulling them apart, with Luna grabbing Lana and Luan grabbing Lola.

"Whoa there, getting a little rowdy there aren't you?" Luna asked.

"We got this Linc," Luan said, picking up the Teddy Bear as well. "We figured you couldn't _bear_ any more fighting."

Stella laughed a bit at Luan's pun, "I wish I had a sister like you Luan."

"Marry Linc and technically we'd be sisters, in the law," Luan said, giggling a bit, though stopped to think. "Maybe I should work on that one."

Lincoln blushed at Luan's pun, though that feeling of awkwardness was only matched by his annoyance. "Are you done?"

"Like a fine steak," Luan said, getting a face palm from her siblings.

"Let's go sis," Luna said, leaving with her sisters.

Lincoln sighed in slight irritation, then turned back to Stella, "Gotta love my sisters."

"It looks fun being around them," Stella said. "I bet you never get bored here, my house can get a little lonely at times."

"That's why Clyde likes coming over as well," Lincoln said. "But being the middle child of ten siblings is quite the adventure, for better or worse."

"So...do you have a favorite?" Stella asked.

Lincoln looked a little surprised by the question, "Um, well..." He then heard an explosion from the tv, "Oh look, the action's picking up again, talk about that later." Lincoln then muttered, "Or not."

Back in the kitchen, Lynn was glaring at the twins, "Mind explaining what happened in there!? You were supposed to pretend to fight and let Lincoln break it up, not fight for real and risk messing things up!"

"Hey I was doing fine until Lola screwed everything up," Lana said.

"Don't make yourself out to be all innocent, you're the one who overreacted to what I said," Lola said.

"You're the one who overreacted!" Lana shouted. "All because I said something you know is true!"

"You wanna know what's true about you!?" Lola warned.

"Enough!" Lynn shouted. "You almost blew it big time, suppose you spooked Stella out of the house!?"

"Well she stayed, that's a good sign," Luan said.

"What was the point of that anyway?" Lola asked. "Why did you want me and Lana to 'fight'?"

"Girls like a guy who can take charge, but they're also suckers for sappiness, so seeing Lincoln assert himself as a big brother for his precious little sisters covers both," Lynn said.

"Well I do like a strong and sensitive guy," Lola said.

"Eh, I can do without the sappiness," Lana said.

Lynn looked back into the living room, "Well that's phase one, we'll give it some time before phase two. If we move to fast, Linc might catch onto us, and he'll throw a conundrum."

"Too bad, those are usually kind of funny," Luan said, then had an idea. "That reminds me of something else we should do! We obviously know she had a good sense of humor since she appreciates my puns, but I'd like to know how she appreciates a good prank..."

"NO!" the sisters collectively shouted.

"I wasn't going to prank her!" Luan insisted. "Well not yet at least. I just figured I'd set up a nice funny prank in general, or better yet, give Lincoln a chance to do a prank. Girls love a guy with a good sense of humor, and we know Lincoln has it in him to be funny, thanks to yours truly."

"We'll save that for another time, last thing we need is for you to get that itch to go on a pranking spree, bad enough we put up with it one day a year," Lynn said.

"Yeah, I don't think Linc would be cool with you setting up pranks around a girl he likes, I don't think he forgot what you did to Ronnie Anne last April Fool's," Luna said.

"Wait, was that the one where we went to a motel?" Lana asked. "I don't think Ronnie Anne was there."

"No that was the one with the doubles, I think, or did I dream that?" Lola asked. "Ugh, thanks Luan, now all the April Fools feel like one giant blur! I can't even remember what was real and what was a nightmare!"

"You're just overreacting," Luan said. "Fine I promise no pranks around her yet. But, if she asks, then you know I'm jumping on that train."

"I'll tell you what should be next," Luna said, grabbing her guitar, strumming it gently. "Some good mood music."

"Maybe later, those comic book movies are too actiony to have mood music," Lynn said.

"Not too actiony," Lana said, glancing over. "I've see some lovey-dovey stuff, looks like those comics aren't all punching."

"Something tells me Linc doesn't care about the romance in those movies," Lynn said. "Not that they can teach much. Linc doesn't have superpowers, so he can't use that too over a girl."

"Well once the movie ends, I can play them a soothing love song," Luna insisted. "They can feel the love tonight."

"You'll get your moment Luna, I might even know how to set the mood, but I'll need Lana's help for that part," Lynn said. "For now let's-"

"Linky!" they heard a cheerful voice say. They all turned to see Leni in the living room near Lincoln and Stella, holding up two dresses.

"What's Leni up to?" Lynn asked, the other sisters gathering from a distance.

"Make it quick please, the best part's coming up," Lincoln said.

"I just need your opinion," Leni said, holding up a cyan dress and a magenta dress. "Which one looks cuter on me." She modeled the Cyan one, "This dress..." she then modeled the other, "Or this one. Miguel told me the Cyan one brings out my eyes, but Fiona keeps telling me that magenta brings out my glow."

"Uh Leni, why are you asking me?" Lincoln asked. "I'm not really one for fashion."

"Normally I would ask Lori, but she's not here, plus you're always honest with me and you have a better eye for fashion than you think," Leni said.

"Well to be honest Leni, they both look nice so it's hard to pick just one," Lincoln said. "I say for now go with the light blue dress, it's similar to what you already where but different enough for others to notice, you pull off both but I'd say stick to a style much more similar."

Leni held the dress close to her again, "Yeah, you're right, this one looks a little better on me. It's settled, I'll wear this one. Thanks Linky!"

"You're welcome Leni," Lincoln said as his older sister walked off.

"So, you have an eye for fashion?" Stella asked.

"Not really, I'm just being honest. Leni can make anything work, so it really didn't matter which one I choose," Lincoln said.

"I say you know fashion, you really pulled off that hipster look a couple weeks back," Stella said.

"Oh that? It was mostly just a phase I was going through, though you already knew that," Lincoln said.

"Hey I wouldn't mind seeing it again, you kind of looked like a rocker, it's such a cool look," Stella said.

"Alright!" Luna shouted, then got pulled aside, just as Lincoln and Stella turned around to see where the noise came from. Shrugging they sat back down and focused on the movie, just in time for the best part Lincoln had mentioned.

"Ease up on the noise Luna!" Lynn said.

"Sorry, but you heard Stella, little bro pulls off the rocker look, I can totally help him shop for the right style," Luna said.

"And I suppose you're gonna teach him how to play a guitar while you're at it?" Lola asked.

"Oh I would love that, plus that idea isn't too far off, I bet he'd love to learn a Smooch song," Luna said.

"Getting ahead of ourselves here," Lynn said. "I know you're desperate for Lincoln to be your apprentice but try to focus on the task at hand."

"Don't be jealous because he's more likely to share interests with me than he would with you," Luna teased.

"I'm working on that!" Lynn shouted, then covered her mouth, not wanting Lincoln or Stella to overhear. "Meet back here in an hour, I have another plan in mind."

The sisters nodded and went to do their own business until the time came.

The movie had finally reached it's finale, Stella looking at awe of what she's seen. "That ending, so amazing. Too bad we have to wait a while for the next movie, but it leaves a lot to think about." She turned to her friend, "Don't you think so...Lincoln?"

Lincoln seemed to be sobbing at the movie, "One-Eyed Jack..."

"Uh Lincoln, are you alright?" Stella asked.

Lincoln snapped out of it, "What? Oh sorry, I forgot how sad the ending was."

"Oh it's fine, I thought it was pretty sad to, but that's what makes the movie interesting," Stella said. "I mean if it was always a happy ending, then they wouldn't be as special. Just like the Galaxy War movies."

"Exactly, wow it's great to have someone who likes the same stuff as me, besides Clyde of course," Lincoln said. "Oh speaking of Clyde, he was actually ten times worse when he saw the ending of this movie."

"He's a big fan of One-Eyed Jack, so that's not too surprising," Stella said. "I was partial to the big action scene myself, especially the awesome music track that played."

"One time I asked Luna if she could play the songs from the movie, I was pleasantly surprised that she agreed to do so," Lincoln said. "Turns out she liked it just as much, even if she's not into the hero stuff."

"I find it so weird that not one of your sisters like this movie, are you sure they hate it or do you just think they do?" Stella asked.

"Honestly I don't even know," Lincoln said. "I mean, Lana might sit through it, Luna does like the soundtrack and Leni called their costumes cute, but my sisters just don't like comics, or anything 'nerdy' as they would put it."

"It's one thing not to like something, but surely your sisters are supportive of your hobbies," Stella said.

"I guess, it's on and off sometimes, I mean they'll laugh at me for wearing my Ace Savvy Costume, but then they're helping me get a comic book in for a contest," Lincoln said, then tapped his chin. "Though they did have something to gain from that."

"Or they did that because they love you," Stella pointed out.

"...I won't rule that out," Lincoln said.

Stella giggled a bit, "So tell me, what is it about Ace Savvy that you really like? I'd really love to hear your opinion."

Lincoln felt a surge of excitement, finally he can explain in full detail the greatness that is Ace Savvy, at least to someone who wasn't already a huge fan. "Let me start with Issue One, in which Ace..." Suddenly the lights in the room began to dim. "Huh?"

"Does this usually happen?" Stella asked.

"Only when we don't pay the bills, or whenever one of my sisters cause a blackout," Lincoln said, then muttered. "And me that one time."

"How would they-" Suddenly they heard some slow, relaxing music from an acoustic guitar. They turned to see Luna casually passing through the area, playing on her guitar.

"Luna?" Lincoln asked, getting Luna's attention.

"Hey bro, don't mind me, I'm just practicing that love song from before, wanna hear a sample?" Luna asked.

"Actually I want to know what happened to the lights," Lincoln said.

"Who knows?" Luna asked. "Just go back to what you were doing, I'm just going to play this song."

Lincoln raised his eyebrow and turned to Stella, "So, I think now would be a good time to-"

_'Oh your eyes, your lovingly gaze_  
_I lose myself just like a maze_  
_And when I see your loving smile_  
_My heart runs laps of a mile'_

Lincoln glared slightly at his sister, suspicion creeping in. This did not go unnoticed by Lynn, who was carefully observing from the kitchen. She quickly grabbed a walkie talkie, "Quick Luce, do your thing, and bring the twins."

"Look Luna," Lincoln said, interrupting Luna's song. "I don't know what's going on, but don't you think we should try to figure out what it-"

"Hey Lincoln," Lucy said, startling both her brother and his friend. "The lights are a little faulty right now, but I have a much more proper lighting source." She then placed down a candelabra with three lit candles.

Lola rushed over with a tray of finger sandwiches in the shape of hearts. "Here's a snack for you."

Lana also rushed over with a large cup of soda, nearly dropping tools from her belt. "I got you something to drink, we could only spare one cup, so we got you a big one with two straws."

It didn't take Lincoln long to figure out what was happening, between the lights dimming, Luna casually practicing her love song nearby, Lucy placing candles and the twins with their snacks, honestly he should have known the moment Luna even first spoke.

"First off, Lola, why are the sandwiches shaped like hearts?" Lincoln asked.

"Uh...so they can look pretty?" Lola said, smiling nervously.

"Alright, second Lana, any reason you have your toolbelt? Specifically carrying the tools you'd need the most for power outages?" Lincoln asked.

"Uh...see I was on my way to fix the problem, then I decided to get you a nice drink, because you're my big brother and I love you," Lana said, batting her eyes adorably.

"Aw, how cute," Stella said, causing Lana to flinch a little. She does not care to be called 'cute', but now was not the time to respond to that.

"Alright then, Lucy, you like the dark, why would you offer a way to fix it?" Lincoln asked.

Lucy began to sweat a bit, she knew her brother was onto them, "Well...I'm sure you don't want your guest to be stuck in the dark."

"Uh-huh..." Lincoln said. "Look don't think for a second I don't know what's going on here, remember Stella and I are just friends!" Lincoln emphasized.

"Right, just friends," Lola said with a wink. "And friends enjoy heart shaped sandwiches with each other, it's even more fun when you feed them to each other."

Lincoln rolled his eyes, they weren't even trying to hide it, or if they were they were doing a really lousy job.

"Look, we really appreciate this, but Stella and I have a prior engagement at the arcade, we have some Karts to race," Lincoln said.

"Can you outrace your heart every time you're near this pretty young girl?" Luan asked, getting an angry blush from Lincoln and a giggle from Stella.

"Your sister's got such a great sense of humor!" Stella said.

"Yeah, yeah, let's get going," Lincoln said, getting of the couch and making his way to the door.

Stella turned her attention to the sisters, "It was nice seeing you all, Luan I love your jokes, do you do open mics?"

"Sure do, I also do birthday parties," Luan said. "I mean business with my Funny Business."

"Is there an age limit?" Stella asked with a glimmer of hope in her voice.

"Not at all, I mean I mostly get younger kids but I have entertained for older clients, including teenage emos," Luan said, then handled Stella a card. "Let's keep in touch."

"Will do," Stella said, then turned to Luna. "I liked that song you sang, is there more?"

"A little, still working on it, I'll let you know when I'm finished, I could use a full review," Luna said.

Stella turned to the twins, "You two are probably the two cutest girls I've had the honor of meeting."

"Why thank you," Lola said. "But I'm cuter, right?"

"Oh I could never pick between you two," Stella said, rubbing both their heads.

"Wouldn't bother me," Lana muttered.

Stella turned to Lucy, "It was nice seeing you as well. I hope I can hear one of your poems sometime soon."

"You will not be disappointed," Lucy said with a hint of a smile.

"Hurry up Stella, all the good games will be taken if we take too long!" Lincoln said.

"Just a second!" Stella said, then called at the stairs, "Bye Lisa! By Lily! Bye Lo-Leni! Bye...bye..."

"Lynn!" the jock said, coming out of the kitchen. "And I'm not upstairs."

Stella chuckled nervously, "Sorry, bye Lynn."

Stella made her way out the door with Lincoln, the two making their way to Gus's Game n Grubs.

"Bye Stella!" Leni shouted from upstairs.

"She already left!" Lola called out, then turned to her sisters. "So...opinions on the girl?"

"I think she's really nice, Lincoln might have himself a keeper," Luan said.

"Well first he's gotta make it to that point," Luna said. "But once I get my song ready, I think it'll work."

"How would you song get that girl to like Lincoln?" Lana asked.

"It'll set the mood," Luna said. "She already likes my tunes."

"I just wish she could remember my name," Lynn said. "It should be the easiest one, takes less time to say."

"Maybe Linky doesn't talk about you as much as he talks about us," Lola teased.

"Please, I'm practically his favorite sister, why wouldn't he talk about me?" Lynn asked.

"Huh? Since when were you his favorite?" Luna asked, the other sisters leaning in, waiting for an explanation.

"Well we are closer in age, he helps me practice my sports, and we used to take baths together," Lynn said.

"You're also the meanest to him though," Lana said.

"What!? No I'm not, Lola is!" Lynn shouted.

"Me!? You're the one who constantly picks on him, shoves him around and calls him 'Stinkin'," Lola countered.

"Well you blackmail him any chance you get," Lynn said.

"Hey, I blackmail all of you, I'm just treating him the same way I would treat any of you," Lola said. "Besides, at least I tell Linky that I love him, when was the last time you told him that?"

"I'm trying to toughen him up, being surrounded by girls is taking a toll on his masculinity," Lynn said. "He should know that I'm trying to help him, not belittle him, everything I've done for Lincoln is for his benefit. I mean, so I may have shoved him around, so I bust his chops a bit, and I may have called him Stinkin', but that's just a term of affection, I mean I've never done anything really bad to him."

"Two words, Bad Luck," Lucy said, getting a gasp from the other sisters.

"That...wasn't our finest moment I'll admit," Lynn said. "But he did lie to us so...call it karma."

"I call it stupid, can't believe I let you trick me into thinking he was bad luck just because you were being a sore loser," Luna said.

"I can't believe she tricked all of us, even Lisa," Luan said.

"I should have consulted the spirits, then it would have prevented my brother from needless torture," Lucy said.

"Look, it's in the past, let's let it stay that way," Lynn said. "Look, I'm the one coming up with the plans to get this girl to like Lincoln, plus if this works he'll owe us all one, that sounds like something we'd all like to have wouldn't we?"

"Well I have a lot of dirt on him so it's not like I need any leverage," Lola said, getting a glare from the other sisters. "Fine, I suppose him doing what I say because he wants to would make things much easier." She looked aside, "Plus I do want Linky to be happy, he's always the most caring when he's happy."

"Same, Lincoln should feel the same happiness I feel when I'm with Sam," Luna said.

"And me with Benny," Luan said.

"Oh, that gives me another idea!" Lynn said. "Can you say, triple date? It nearly worked when Lincoln and Lori took Bobby and Ronnie Anne to that Jean-Juan's."

"Speaking of Lori and Bobby, we should ask their help too, I'm sure they wouldn't mind," Luan said.

"That's if Bobby's alright with Lincoln dating a girl other than his sister," Lana said.

"Come on, Bobby's a nice guy, he wouldn't be like that," Luna said.

"Wonder how they're doing now?" Lola wondered.

At the city, Lynn Sr. and Carlos Casagrande are working together to bring in some crates into the bodega. Carlos's two sons CJ and Carl were also helping, along with his niece Ronnie Anne. Although Carl was less interested in working and more interested in gawking over Lori, who was having a conversation with Carlotta.

As Ronnie Anne was moving a crate, she noticed an odd situation. Her brother Bobby somehow got stuck in the cooler again, "Dude seriously?"

"Let me out baby sis?" Bobby pleaded.

She was about to, but her grandfather had passed by. "Roberto got himself in there, he can get himself out."

Ronnie Anne shrugged it off, "Sorry bro, you heard abuelo."

"But it's co-ho-hold!" Bobby whined.

Carlotta shook her head at her cousin's incompetence. "Sometimes I wonder what you saw in Bobby, I mean he's really sweet and all but he's not always much in the brains department."

"I'm kind of used to it from my sister Leni," Lori said. "But I really don't mind, like you said, he's really sweet, and that's all I care about in a guy."

"You have the patience of a Saint to endure that, must help having such a large family," Carlotta said.

"Well it's not easy, my sisters and little brother can drive me up a wall," Lori said.

"Speaking of your little brother, why isn't he here? Doesn't he usually come with you when you come by? Figured he'd want to hang out with Ronnie Anne," Carlotta said.

"Well for starters, with all the stuff my dad brought, there wasn't much room in Vanzilla," Lori said. "Plus Lincoln had plans today and this was short notice, those two factors helped him weasel his way out of coming, probably because he knew there would be physical labor, which my brother fails at."

"Well he is kind of scrawny, no offense, probably why my grandma always wants to feed him," Carlotta said.

"He just needs more exercise, something my sister Lynn has tried, and failed to do," Lori said.

"Still, I'd think he would want to see Ronnie Anne, and she'd love to see her boyfriend," Carlotta said.

Lori giggled, "If Lincoln were here, he'd insist that he wasn't her boyfriend. Sometimes I wonder if the two are just trying to hide their feelings for each other. They'd look so cute together, I really wish Lincoln would just come clean."

"Well next time you come down bring him along, we'll get this ball rolling again," Carlotta said.

"Honestly I should have brought him along this time," Lori said. "Better than watching some movie marathon with his friend."

"Friend? Oh that boy that has a crush on you?" Carlotta asked.

"No, I mean it was suppose to be Clyde, but he cancelled to go see his grandmother," Lori said. "He invited another friend, a girl who moved to Royal Woods recently."

Carlotta's eyes widened, "Did you say a girl!?"

This got Ronnie Anne's attention, who turned toward the two teens.

"Uh, yeah, but what-" Suddenly Carlotta dragged Lori into their store's supply closet, much to Ronnie Anne's confusion.

"Wonder what that was about?" Ronnie Anne said, then shrugged it off before strolling away. "Eh, probably some teen drama, least Carlotta's with Lori and not me, I really don't care who said what are her school."

"Um Carlotta?" Lori asked. "Why did you drag us in here?" Lori coughed a bit, "Ugh it's so dusty, doesn't your grandfather or Bobby-"

"You let your little brother bring a girl over!?" Carlotta asked, interrupting Lori.

"Uh yeah?" Lori answered. "He said it's a friend of his so-"

"Are you sure it's just a friendship? What if it's something more?" Carlotta asked.

"Lincoln told me that he and this girl are just friends, that he already tried wooing her and she wasn't interested," Lori said.

"He wooed her!" Carlotta shouted, looking unhappy. "He's suppose to be dating Ronnie Anne and he has his eyes on other girls!?"

"Now Carlotta-" Lori tried explaining.

"Why didn't you stop him? You can't let him go around and pick up girls like this, what would Ronnie Anne think?" Carlotta asked.

"Look, I know that Lincoln and Ronnie Anne would look cute together, and yes, I would love more than anything for Lincoln to date Ronnie Anne, but it's his call, not mine," Lori said. "He says Ronnie Anne isn't his girlfriend, Ronnie Anne insisted that Lincoln wasn't her boyfriend, if they're not dating then I can't just tell Lincoln not to date other girls."

"Why not? You're the older sister aren't you?" Carlotta asked.

"What do you do this to Ronnie Anne as well?" Lori asked.

"I don't have to, she's already waiting for Lincoln, your brother just needs to make the first move," Carlotta said.

"Technically he already did, he kissed her, twice, I know because I was there for both," Lori said. "Look they had something but I don't think they were interested in continuing, besides they probably can't handle long distance. Remember how nervous I was having a long distance relationship with Bobby? Not everyone can handle something like that, fortunately what helps me is knowing that one, I can drive to meet Bobby or he can drive to meet me, two, once I go to college I'll be closer to Bobby. Lincoln and Ronnie Anne don't have easy access to each other and they're a long way from college."

Carlotta sighed, "Now I can see why Ronnie Anne didn't want to move here. Still patience is a virtue, this could teach them that. Ronnie's willing to wait, why not your brother?"

"Alright, let me explain this differently," Lori said. "Let's say I forbade Lincoln from dating another girl, how well do you really think that's gonna work?"

"I can't see why that wouldn't work," Carlotta said.

"I can, first Lincoln might not even listen to me, and even if I could get him to listen, which I can, suppose he tells my parents?" Lori asked.

"We just gotta convince them, shouldn't be that tough, I'm great at convincing my parents," Carlotta said.

"Alright, let's consider the third option, my sisters," Lori said.

"What about them? They want your brother to date Ronnie as well, don't they?" Carlotta asked.

"They wouldn't mind I'm sure, but if I prevented Lincoln from dating another girl, it will literally turn into a catastrophe," Lori said. "First they'll probably side with him, they don't care if it's Ronnie Anne, they're happy with any girl Lincoln's interested in. Two, they'll start to wonder how long before I start controlling their relationship! Luna and Luan will probably worry about me sabotaging their dating life, the younger kids will start to think I'll try setting them up with your little brothers, now don't get me wrong, they seem like nice boys, but that should be their choice."

"Come on Lori, they like Ronnie Anne, and they know her better than this girl I'm sure, we can get them on our side too," Carlotta said.

"Carlotta, please, I don't want to do this to him, he'll never forgive me if I force him into a relationship, and they'll just end up unhappy," Lori said.

"But they're compatible, can't you see that?" Carlotta asked. "Think about it, you love Bobby, and out of all your siblings, his little sister is the exact same age as the only boy in your family, that's fate! You and Lincoln are meant to be with Bobby and Ronnie Anne."

"Too be fair, she could have dated any one of my sisters, I mean Luna has a girlfriend, so for all I know, one of my other sisters could have that same interest," Lori said.

"Well we know your brother has interest," Carlotta said. "Come on girl, think how much closer our families could be, think how happy Bobby would be."

Lori began to think this over, while yes she did say she wants Lincoln to be happy and would never manipulate his love life, perhaps a nudge in the right direction could be beneficial for all parties, plus if this girl really was just friends with Lincoln, then it can't do that much harm to reunite two potential lovers.

"I'll think about it," Lori said.

"I know you'll make the right choice," Carlotta said. "For now let's keep this between us, my parents, grandparents and aunt believe that Lincoln is Ronnie Anne's boyfriend, if they find out he was hanging around another girl, they might think he's cheating, plus Bobby would probably freak out too."

"Right, Bobby," Lori said, feeling some uncertainty. She wants to believe this isn't a big deal, but given how Bobby's reacted to Ronnie Anne's sadness before, she can't help but slightly worry how the young tomboy would react if she knew Lincoln had another female friend. Hopefully things don't turn out too badly.

* * *

**First thanks for the support this fic has gotten. It was my first attempt at The Loud House so I wasn't sure if it would be received that well, but I think I'm on a good start. There might not be too frequent updates, but only because I want to make sure this story has great quality, so I'll do my best to get the chapters out, even if it takes a while.**

**I'm gonna try to avoid some traditional plot that I've seen, but at the same time make sure it's true to the characters. I want certain bonds to be shown and certain friendships to be explored. Thanks again for the support and I'll see you all soon.**


	3. In the Zone

Back with Lincoln and Stella, the two were making their way over to the arcade, Lincoln still slightly annoyed at his sisters meddling.

"Well after meeting your sisters, I can say that I am totally jealous of you," Stella said. "Ten sisters, all with their own unique talents, and really friendly too. Luna's a great singer, Luan's so funny and the twins are really adorable."

"Yeah, they're great, I just wish they didn't butt into my life so much," Lincoln said.

"Aw, is this because they thought we were dating?" Stella asked. "Don't worry, it didn't weird me out, I mean you did warn me and I partially expected it anyway. I mean if I had a brother that made friends with a girl I'd probably be the same way."

"Doesn't make it any less annoying," Lincoln said.

"They're just showing that they care about you, it's actually kind of cute how they dot over you," Stella said.

Lincoln sighed in annoyance, wanting to just move on from that little embarrassment, "Let's just get to the arcade, hopefully it's not too packed, really want to try that new Kart Racing game."

The two arrived at Gus's Game and Grubs, fortunately it wasn't too packed, but the game Lincoln wanted to play was occupied by some kids, one he knew pretty well.

"Hey it's Chandler," Lincoln said.

"Chandler? Isn't he one of the popular boys?" Stella asked.

"Yeah, his dad owns a sewage plant, he does cool parties there, especially on his birthday, I really wanted to go to his last one," Lincoln said.

"Oh, were you not invited?" Stella asked.

Lincoln rubbed his arm, "Well I was, but it wasn't worth it at the time. It's a long story."

"Well since you seem to know him, let's see if he'll be done soon, or better yet, we can join him," Stella said.

"Oh, I don't wanna bother him, he looks busy," Lincoln said.

"Come on, it couldn't hurt to ask," Stella said, grabbing Lincoln's hand and dragging him toward the machine.

Lincoln started blushing at the contact, "Um Stella, you're kind of holding my-"

"Excuse me," Stella said, having arrived at the game and getting Chandler's attention.

"Oh, hello there," Chandler said, with a little charm in his voice upon seeing Stella. "What can I do for you?"

"We were wondering if we'd be able to get the next race," Stella said.

"We?" Chandler immediately noticed Lincoln nearby, Stella still holding his hand. "Oh Larry...is this your girlfriend?"

"It's Lincoln," the boy corrected as he pulled his hand away. "And no, Stella's just a friend."

Chandler felt a little relieved, "Well that's too bad, she's kind of cute."

"Um, much appreciated, so will the next race be available?" Stella asked, trying to tone down her blush.

"Sure, I'm getting a little bored of this anyway, unless you'd like to join me," Chandler said, raising his eyebrows.

"Well I'm here with Lincoln, so it's only fair that I get to play this game with him first," Stella said.

"Oh bummer, cool with me though," Chandler said, getting off. "If you're still interested though, I'll be at the Mega Fish Brawler arcade booth."

As Chandler left to the fighting game, Lincoln and Stella took their place on the seats of this game.

"That was nice of him," Stella said.

"Chandler's a cool guy, little full of himself at times I'll admit, but he's not bad," Lincoln said. "Kinda wish he'd remember my name."

"Don't worry about it too much," Stella said. "I won't forget your name, kind of hard to forget the boy who took their time to make you feel welcome."

"It was the least I could do," Lincoln said. "Now let's get racing!"

"Sounds fun, just don't expect me to go easy on you," Stella teased.

"Funny I was about to say the same," Lincoln smugly stated as they selected their racers.

The two got into their game rather quickly, and as promised, neither went too easy on the other.

Nearby Chandler had been putting his coins into the arcade machine, feeling a bit jealous of Lincoln and Stella. "Who knew Larry could get such a pretty girl to hang out with him? I gotta give this boy more credit, he's got quite a way with ladies, first with that Santiago chick and now this new girl." He shrugged it off, "Well it looks like they're in the Friend Zone, so I can move in when the time is right, maybe Larry can help me with that."

A bit later after Lincoln and Stella finished up, the two made their way to the counter to order some food.

"What do you want Stella? I'll cover it," Lincoln said.

"You don't have too, I brought money," Stella replied.

"Come on, you're my guest," Lincoln said. "Besides my sisters would be pretty mad if I didn't cover for you."

"We don't have to tell them," Stella said. "Besides, this isn't a date, you don't need to cover my expenses, I can take care of myself."

"I'll settle this," Chandler said, getting their attention.

"Oh, hey Chandler, wait how are you gonna settle this?" Lincoln asked.

"I'll cover it," Chandler said, pulling out a credit card. "Little gift from pops, he won't mind if I use it for some friends."

"Oh, really?" Lincoln said. "I appreciate that but I don't want to burden you."

"It's no burden Larry," Chandler said. "Besides, consider it payment for getting me some free food that one time. I heard you had to work it off, guess nothing in life is free."

"Free food?" Stella asked.

"Remember what I said before about missing Chandler's party?" Lincoln said. "I had to cover for a mistake I made."

"It was cool of your sister to get us that stuff, but I guess the boss wasn't too keen about letting a few things slide," Chandler said. "Just let me make this up to you Larry, I insist."

"Um, alright then," Lincoln said. He wasn't going to bother correcting Chandler when he was trying to do a favor for him.

"And it's Lincoln by the way," Stella said, not currently sharing Lincoln's line of thought.

"Right, Lincoln, sorry," Chandler said.

"Easy mistake, doesn't bother me," Lincoln insisted, forcing a smile. "We really appreciate this Chandler."

"Like I said, no trouble," Chandler said. "Besides Pops is paying for it anyway, I usually cover for my friends so he won't even notice the bill." Chandler made his order to Gus, "Hit us up with your finest pizza, drinks and fries!"

"Glad to see you kids actually paying for the food this time," Gus said, going to get the order.

"Oh it was just a few pizzas, didn't have to make Lar-Lincoln miss my party, I was just warming up to him," Chandler said.

"Hey he offered," Gus said. "At least one of you kids took responsibility."

"It's nothing, really," Lincoln said, getting a bit nervous. He was suddenly getting on Chandler's good side, he didn't want to lose it.

Gus handed over the food and took Chandler's card, "You're good, enjoy."

The kids grabbed the food and made their way over to a table, each one quick to grab a slice of pizza.

"Wow, the pizza here is so yummy," Stella said.

"Yeah, there's a reason this is one of the best hang out spots in Royal Woods," Lincoln said.

"You're new around here right?" Chandler asked.

Stella nodded in confirmation, "Yeah, I moved here a few weeks back, I was a bit nervous at first, but thankfully Lincoln was really nice to me, I suddenly felt really comfortable."

"That so? Sorry I wasn't around, I would have helped make you feel welcome as well," Chandler said. "But at least someone's showing you around. I've got a few spots if you're ever interested. Maybe I can show you my dad's sewage plants."

"Uh, that sounds fun, I guess?" Stella said.

"This summer I'm hosting a party at my dad's sewage plant, I'd like for you two to be the first to accept my invites," Chandler said.

"Wow really!?" Lincoln asked. "We'd love to!"

"Well I suppose it would be rude to turn down an invite, plus it does kind of sound like it could be fun," Stella said.

"Excellent, it's settled then," Chandler said. "I don't have any invites on me, but when I do make them, you two will be the first to get them, I'll even show them off in front of the school, that way all the kids will see just how lucky you are."

"Wow, a party and instant popularity, what a combination!" Lincoln said. "Hey you think you can get some for my friends too?"

"Friends? Right I seem to remember you having a friend who wore glasses," Chandler said. "What was his name? Cliff or something?"

"Clyde, his name is Clyde McBride," Lincoln corrected.

"Oh right, um I'll think about it, I'm pretty selective with who comes and you two were the first to earn this, if Clyde or any of your other friends can earn it then they're in, if not well it's just you two," Chandler said.

Lincoln looked a bit concerned, he hated the idea of Clyde being unable to attend, but it sounds like he might have a chance. But if Clyde doesn't get invited, Lincoln would wonder if he would have to turn down Chandler's offer, though Stella will be going too so Lincoln would want to spend time with his other friend. He would ask his sisters, but he's pretty confident they might suggest going with Stella, but then again they all have best friends of their own, so maybe they'll have a different response.

"I guess that's fair," Lincoln said. "It would mean a lot, I mean he turned down the last party to help me out."

"That's true, I'll think about it," Chandler said. "So anyone up for some Mega Fish Brawler after this?"

"Sounds great, oh but I should warn you that I'm a master at Muscle Fish, I love trashing noobs online with him," Lincoln said.

"Looking forward to it," Chanlder said. "How about you Stella?"

"Um, I'm not particularly good at that game," Stella said.

"I can show you some combos," Chandler said, raising his eyebrows.

Stella shrugged, "Alright, count me in."

The rest of the night went off well, Lincoln and the others played their rounds of Mega Fish Brawlers, with Lincoln and Chandler getting a good share of wins, then they played other games like Skeeball and Air Hockey, Lincoln fairing well in the former but not too great in reflexes in the latter. Chandler got really friendly with the two, especially when it came to Stella. The night ended, all parties had to make their way home.

"Bye Chandler, it was nice meeting you!" Stella said.

"The pleasure was all mine!" Chandler said as he left with his friends.

"See you at school Chandler!" Lincoln said, waving good-bye as he walked Stella home.

"He's a nice boy," Stella said.

"Yeah, this is the most I've hung out with him," Lincoln said. "Wow, this was a really fun day, much better than I expected."

"Yeah, it was nice finally seeing your house, and all of your sisters, aside from Lori," Stella said.

"You can come by again tomorrow if you'd like," Lincoln said, then remembered something. "Oh wait, I promised the twins I'd take them to the park."

"I don't mind tagging along, unless you think they would," Stella said.

"Oh they won't, Clyde accompanies me to most things I do with my family, they don't mind having him around since they enjoy his company for the most part, plus they sometimes feel bad that I'm the only boy there and figure it's good for me to have another boy my age around," Lincoln said.

"Aw, your sisters are so thoughtful," Stella said.

"When they want to be they are," Lincoln said, getting a light arm punch from Stella.

"Be nice," Stella joked. "Come on, you know you love your sisters to bits."

"Well, yeah I do," Lincoln bashfully admitted.

"And you know they love you to bits, I can tell from how they look at you, especially the twins, so much admiration," Stella said.

"The twins?" Lincoln asked. "I can probably believe Lana looking up to me like that but Lola? She's too busy looking down at me from the pedestal she occasionally places herself on, you heard her argument with Lana."

"She's just putting on a tough act, some girls like to hide their feelings because they're afraid it makes them look weak," Stella said. "If Lola talks down to you it's just because she wants to prove that she's pretty and strong. Being a pageant girl she has to develop some aggressive attitude since it's a competition, something you help her through if I'm correct."

"Well yeah, I enjoy coaching her, it's kind of fun," Lincoln said.

"And I'm sure she appreciates what you do for her, if anything I wouldn't be surprised if she wanted your attention all to herself," Stella said. "Since you're the only boy among sisters, I wouldn't be surprised if they themselves tried to see who could be your favorite."

"I don't even wanna think about favorites, I pick one favorite, I'll have nine angry sisters who know where I sleep," Lincoln dreaded. "But why would my opinion matter the most?"

"Like I said, you're the only boy, so naturally you have more attention drawn to yourself," Stella said. "I mean I'm just making a theory, I'd like to spend more time with your sisters and see how they view you compared to each other."

"You make this seem like a science experiment, I'm a little surprised Lisa hasn't tried that yet," Lincoln said. "Then again she might have been doing it for a while."

"Well anyway, I can come by tomorrow if you'd like, maybe I'll have a chance to see Lori," Stella said.

"I just hope seeing Bobby puts her back in a good mood," Lincoln said.

"Bobby's her boyfriend right?" Stella asked. "And you were friends with his little sister."

"Still am, me and Ronnie Anne keep in touch through phone calls, texts and web chats," Lincoln said.

"That's so nice, so you and her aren't dating, right?" Stella asked.

"We used to, I think, but we're keeping it in the friendzone, besides I don't think I can handle long distance, Lori's barely able to," Lincoln said. "Me and Ronnie Anne had a really odd relationship, I guess she is what you described, a girl who acted tough to hide her emotions. It worked really well on me for a while, until I went to her house once and saw how caring she was to her family."

"Most guys need girls to bring out a softer side to them, but sometimes the exact opposite can happen as well," Stella said.

"Never thought about it like that," Lincoln said. "Is it weird that I'm the type of boy who can soothe out a girl?"

"Weird how?" Stella asked.

"Boys should be, you know, tough and rugged, but I never felt tough, in fact I'm convinced that thanks to my sisters, I'll never be manly or anything, I've adapted so many feminine traits," Lincoln said. "I know how to give a manicure, not something most boys my age know how to do. I don't even know many boys older than me that do. I've somewhat come to terms with it, but even that's something I'm not too confident I should be feeling. How can I balance out a girl's sensitivity if I have too much of my own?"

"First off Lincoln, being manly doesn't mean acting all tough and macho like, most girls don't care for that, at least I don't," Stella said. "There's nothing wrong with you being sensitive, that means you can relate to girls, understand them on a more emotional level."

"But Lynn told me that I need to be more assertive and boyish like, otherwise girls won't find me attractive," Lincoln said. "I mean, what about me did you not find attractive?"

"Huh? I never said I didn't find you attractive," Stella said.

"Wait, you didn't? I thought that's why you didn't want to date me, or any of my friends for that matter," Lincoln said.

"Not because you're unattractive, I'm just not interested in having a boyfriend right now," Stella said. "Look, even if I'm not interested in dating right now, I do think you're handsome Lincoln, and I don't think you're too soft to be anyone's boyfriend, you are quite ambitious and you're still 'boyish' considering your love for comics. Having feminine qualities is an advantage, not a weakness. Also if your sister wants to see you athletic, then she can get some of her friends and go against you, me and the guys in a round of dodgeball, they'll fall before our Scorpion Formation." That got a small laugh from the two kids. "You're a talented boy Lincoln, try not to forget that."

"Wow, thanks Stella," Lincoln said. "Really glad we're friends, you're one of the first girls outside my family that I can be open with, I mean even Ronnie Anne wouldn't get this deep. She'd just punch me in the arm and tell me 'toughen up lame-o' or something like that."

"Lame-O?" Stella asked.

"It's her nickname for me, it used to be annoying but I don't mind it anymore," Lincoln said. "She's not mean about it, she's just messing around. Kind of like how Lynn likes to call me 'Stinkin', she has a unique way of showing me affection."

"Well Lynn is a jock right?" Stella asked, getting a nod in confirmation. "So it makes sense. Weird though, you don't stink at all, sometimes you smell like shampoo."

"Well having ten sisters means more aroma from my cleaning supplies, I should feel bothered but I like the way it feels in my hair," Lincoln said.

"Like I said, nothing wrong with an feminine guy," Stella said. "I'll take that over the stereotypical tough guy."

The two chuckled as they made their way to Stella's house, Lincoln saying goodnight to his friend.

"See you tomorrow Stella," Lincoln said, waving good-bye.

"See you then!" Stella called out. "And remember Lincon, don't be ashamed of you feminine attributes, a guy should be sweet and sensitive, that's why I like you and your friends. She then went inside her house, a satisfied Lincoln making his way back home. Today was the most fun he's had in a while, seeing his favorite movies with Stella and not only hanging out at Gus's Game and Grubs, but he even got to get on Chandler's good side, everything was working out pretty well for the middle child of eleven.

Back in Great Lakes, Lori and her father were just about done and making their way back home from The Casagrandes' home.

"Thank you for everything Mr. Loud," Hector said, waving good-bye alongside his family.

"No problem Mr. Casagrande," Lynn Sr. said. "Also, call me Lynn, we're all chums by now aren't we?"

"Ay sí, that we are," Hector said. "Come by again soon, and maybe bring your lovely family! I'm sure Ronalda would love to have Lincoln come play with her."

"Sorry he couldn't be here today, he made a promise to a friend and I have to respect that," Lynn Sr. said.

"Ah, keeping his word, what a good boy," Hector said.

"Sí mi amour, Lincoln is a good boy," his wife Rosa said. "I'll have a nice big meal for him and his sisters."

Meanwhile Lori had her boyfriend Bobby in a farewell hug, "See you next time Bobby, hopefully neither of us won't be too busy."

"Maybe I'll come out and see you, I like being back in Royal Woods from time to time, still kind of miss it," Bobby said.

"We all miss you too, my sisters and Lincoln did need to get used to not seeing you around as often," Lori said.

"Yeah I need to catch up with them, I'd like to see how Luna and Luan are adjusting to dating life, and little bro too, gotta see how he's doing," Bobby said.

"Well he's doing fine," Lori said. "But yeah, you should definitely come down, you can bring Ronnie Anne too."

"Someone mention me?" they heard. They turned to see Ronnie Anne standing there, enjoying an ice pop. "Back to Royal Woods huh?"

"Yeah, it's been nice seeing you again Ronnie Anne," Lori said. "Sorry Lincoln couldn't be here."

"Yeah he already apologized in advance during our last video chat, saying he and that McBride kid were watching an Ace Savvy movie, and that they planned this before finding out you were coming," Ronnie Anne said.

"Last video chat?" Lori asked. "When was that?"

"Uh, two days ago, why?" Ronnie Anne asked.

"Nothing! Nothing at all, just a bit curious," Lori insisted, getting a look of confusion from Ronnie Anne. "Um, Ronnie Anne, do you miss Lincoln like, a lot?"

"Uh..." Ronnie Anne wasn't sure how to answer this without giving off the wrong idea. "Well I did like having him around, so I kind of miss seeing him as often as I used to I guess."

"Next weekend we can head back to Royal Woods, that sound good?" Bobby asked.

"I'm cool with that, it'd be nice to see how my favorite lame-o is doing," Ronnie Anne said.

"He'd like that too," Lori said, heading toward Vanzilla. "Bye Ronnie, by Bobby."

"Good-bye Casagrandes," Lynn Sr said. "Don't be strangers yourselves, maybe soon we can do a big BBQ!"

"Sounds fun, we'll keep in touch my friend," Hector said, waving good-bye with his family.

As the Loud father and daughter left, Carlotta turned to Ronnie Anne, "Well we got work to do soon cuz."

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Ronnie Anne asked.

"Well we gotta get you ready to meet your beau," Carlotta said.

Ronnie Anne facepalmed, "For the last time, Lincoln is NOT my boyfriend."

"Sure he isn't," Carlotta said, much to Ronnie Anne's annoyance. "Don't worry, I got your back."

Ronnie Anne shook her head, "Why do I even bother?" She went back inside to return to her room, though perhaps she should try contacting Lincoln later, just to see how he's been doing.

Speaking of Lincoln, by the time he got home, he found nine curious sisters staring intently at him, their eyes brimming with curiosity. "Oh boy, here it comes."

"So tell us the deats bro!" Luna eagerly shouted.

"Did you hold her hand!?" Leni asked.

"Were you a perfect gentleman?" Lola asked.

"Did you feel a connection through your souls?" Lucy asked.

"You didn't do anything weird did you?" Lynn asked.

"Did you kiss her?" Lana asked, the other sisters leaning in closer to await his response.

"Nothing happened, we just went to play some arcade games, then we met with a friend from school and hung out with him as well," Lincoln said.

"What!?" Lola shouted. "You can't invite other people to join you when you're in the middle of a date!"

"It wasn't a date!" Lincoln insisted. "Me and Stella were just hanging out, then Chandler came over and it became a group thing."

"Chandler?" Lana asked. "That boy who's dad owns a sewage plant?"

"That you and Clyde tried getting invites to by using Lori's employment at the place?" Luan asked.

"Yes, that one," Lincoln said. "He was completely cool though, he offered to let me and Stella chill with him and his friends, he even covered for us as an apology for that whole invite fiasco. Stella and I even received invitations to a party this summer."

"Ooh, invites to a party huh?" Lola said. "That could make for a fun little date."

"I told you it's not a..." Lincoln sighed in annoyance. "Never mind, it's been a long day and I'm tired. So if you don't mind, I'm going to get ready bed."

"Well don't forget you're taking me and Lana to the park tomorrow," Lola said.

"I remember, also if you don't mind, Stella might come along," Lincoln said. "Turns out she actually likes being around all of you."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lola asked, glaring at her brother.

"Nothing!" Lincoln insisted, hoping to avoid Lola's wrath. "Look, you know I don't mind the chaos, and stressful as it is having ten sisters, I still wouldn't trade it away for anything."

"Aw..." the sisters said simultaneously.

"It's just that, not many seem to appreciate how...excitable you all can be, so I'm relieved that Stella is one of the few who don't mind," Lincoln said.

"That's how you know she's a keeper brah," Luna said. "We know we're a lot to handle, we get that same worry whenever we bring our friends over, so you're definitely not alone."

"That's why we're happy to see you together, you deserve someone who will look past this chaos and like you for you," Luan said.

"So we really want you two to work out," Leni said.

"You're not going to find too many girls out there that can handle this level of stress," Lisa said.

"I get you want us to get together, but she told me she wasn't interested in a relationship," Lincoln said. "Look, I'll be honest, I do think Stella's pretty and I would love to have her as a girlfriend. But she doesn't want it yet, so I have to respect that."

"So you're telling me that you took 'no' for an answer?" Lynn asked.

"What? No, that's not-" Lincoln groaned. "This isn't a game Lynn! She has feelings I need to respect!"

"You just admitted you liked this girl, and you're just gonna settle for the Friend Zone?" Lynn asked.

"What do you expect me to do Lynn?" Lincoln asked.

"Try harder! Linc no girl is going to easily agree to be someone's girlfriend, you want it you gotta work for it, no girl wants to date a quitter!" Lynn said.

Lincoln was close to pulling his hair out, once again his sister was being very obnoxious and it was getting on his nerves. "Lynn you are so...so...out of it!"

"Hey I'm just looking out for you little bro," Lynn said.

"I don't need you looking out for me, I can handle this alone!" Lincoln said. "Look, I just want to be Stella's friend, that's all she wants right now, I don't want to take any unnecessary chances."

"Bro, love's about taking chances, if you just settle then you won't get far," Lynn said.

Lincoln started gritting his teeth, it's like her brain couldn't register what he was trying to tell her. "Look, I'm done talking about this. I'm going upstairs." He turned to the twins, "So just to be sure, you two would be ok if Stella came with us to the park tomorrow?"

"Yeah, of course!" Lola said. "We'd gladly take her over Clyde at least."

"Hey!" Lincoln said, a little offended by her insult of his friend.

"Easy Lols, Clyde's cool," Lana said. "But yeah, we're cool with you bringing this girl, even if it's not a date."

"Though with a little convincing..." Lola said.

"Please don't try to push us together Lola," Lincoln said. "Like I said, we'll get together if and when she's ready." He turned his attention to Lynn, "And that's all we're doing."

Lynn shrugged it off, "Have it your way, but don't come running to us when she hooks up with some other kid."

"I'll take my chance," Lincoln said, barely caring about his sister's words as he went upstairs to him room.

After hearing the door to his room close, Lynn turned to the rest of her sisters, "Alright, who's ready for the next part of our plan?"

"Maybe we should ditch this whole match-up thing," Luna suggested, the other sisters agreeing.

"What!? Don't tell me you're all giving up too!" Lynn complained. "We have her where we need her, we just need a little push and-"

"Dude, save it," Luna said. "I hate to admit this, but I don't think they're getting together anytime soon."

"Yeah, Lincoln seemed really serious when he said she wasn't interested in a relationship," Luan said.

"We can usually tell when he's hiding something, but he didn't seem to have much to hide just now," Lucy said.

"Come on, you know he's in denial, he's just masking it better, kid's learning how to sneak around us, we gotta stay on top of our game," Lynn insisted.

"What was he hiding exactly?" Luna asked. "He straight up admitted he wanted to date Stella, he didn't hide the fact that he felt a thing for her, but she doesn't want that and he wants to respect that."

"Sometimes that's the most important thing," Luan said. "It shows Lincoln respects a girl's feelings and he won't try to force things to go his way. I'm sure she appreciates that and maybe that appreciation will work in his favor."

"Linky's a sweet boy, I'm sure she'll start crushing on him soon," Leni said. "If she doesn't have one already."

That gave Lynn an idea, "Of course, you're a genius Leni!"

"I am?" Leni asked. "Wow, does this mean I'm smarterer than Lisa is?"

"Excuse me?" Lisa said, finding a little fault in her comment.

"Yeah, yeah sure Leni," Lynn said. "Alright team, you did well today, now get back to the benches before the next inning, this game isn't over."

Luna rolled her eyes in annoyance, "I'm starting to see what Lincoln is talking about. Don't bug him anymore about this."

"If you keep meddling, it might cause more harm than good," Luan said.

"Uh-huh, whatever you say girls," Lynn said. "Just get going before I leave you warming the benches for the remainder of this thing."

Luna glared slightly at Lynn, "Just remember, unlike you, me and Luan have someone we're dating, so if Lincoln needs help, he'll more likely come to us about it."

"You may be the star slugger of your teams, but we're the stars who shined bright in the eyes of others. Me and Luna stole hearts faster than you could steal home base," Luan said, giggling to herself, getting a few chuckles from her siblings in the process, a rare moment of genuine laughter at one of Luan's jokes.

Lynn gritted her teeth at that comment, "Well if you're so smart when it comes to romance, then why don't you two try setting our brother up with Stella?"

"Weren't you listening brah?" Luna asked. "She doesn't want a date, and our bro isn't one to disrespect that."

"Staying friends might work to their benefit, even if they don't end up dating, when other girls see how nice Lincoln can be, that'll increase his odds of pulling another girlfriend, especially if Stella puts in a good word for him," Luan said.

"Fine, I see how it is," Lynn said. "Fine, I'll step back, but once Lincoln starts getting in over his head, you'll realize how much he needs us, and I'll be the first to help him with that, after all that's what makes me his favorite sister."

"Ugh, again with this 'Favorite Sister' mumbo jumbo," Lola said.

"What? Jealous?" Lynn asked. "I don't blame you, anyway I'll let you take over and I'll just watch as you all come crashing down." Lynn started making her way upstairs, "If you need me, I'll be in my room, making the back-up for your likely inevitable failure."

As Lynn left their line of sight, the sisters could only shake their heads in shame, they knew Lynn could be overconfident but this was a whole new level.

"Look, ignoring what Lynn said, for now let's try to cool it with Lincoln and Stella," Luna said. "I know we all want to see our bro nab a girl, but we gotta trust he knows what he's doing."

"While I don't want to agree or encourage Lynn, she has something of a point," Lisa said. "Statistically males aren't that reliable when it comes to proper romance skills, which is why they may often fall flat on their first few attempts, and unless the female in question is patient enough to persevere through all that, it usually means multiple failures and multiple heartbreaks."

"Bit harsh don't you think Lis?" Luna asked.

"Harsh as it may sound, it's also scientific fact," Lisa said. "That's why we all keep close tabs on Lincoln's love life, he needs the female mind to guide him, a male mind isn't capable of the same level of romance."

"She's not wrong," Lola commented. "Linky's sweet and all, but he's kind of clueless when it comes to girls and romance."

"I'm not sure if I can fully agree on that," Luan said. "Benny's actually quite romantic, he's a little shy but that's normal."

"Well tell me this Luan, which one of you made the first move?" Lisa asked.

"Oh, Mr. Coconuts did," Luan explained, garnering a confused reaction from the group.

"You mean your puppet?" Lisa asked.

"Yeah, he and Mrs. Apple Blossom helped us open up to each other, then we hit it off immediately," Luan said.

"...I'm going to assume this Mrs. Apple Blossom is also a puppet?" Lisa asked.

"Well technically she's a marionette but whatever floats your boat," Luan said.

Lisa shook her head in shame, "It's difficult talking logic with you."

"Excuse me!?" Luan asked, somewhat offended by the comment.

"Come on, let's not start turning on each other," Luna said. "Lynn's already starting to get on my nerves, last thing we need is to turn on each other."

Luan groaned slightly, "Fine, I don't want to get into this anyway, let's just back off this Lincoln and Stella situation for the moment, at least for now."

The sisters nodded and went about their own business for the time being. Luna turned to her roommate sister, "So, what should we do about Lynn?"

"Let's keep an eye on her, she's obviously not going to back off," Luan said. "She seems unusually determined to help Lincoln out."

"Yeah, going on about being his 'favorite sister', when has she ever cared about that?" Luna asked.

"She's just hyping herself up, it's her competitive edge," Luan said. "I just hope she doesn't get too carried away with this, we certainly don't want her scaring away Stella."

"Yeah, little bro won't be too quick to forgive that," Luna said. "Alright, we'll make sure she cools it, but what about the others?"

"Well Lisa really isn't that into romance, her only chemistry is with her kit," Luan chuckled a bit at her joke. "Lucy won't bother Lincoln too much, though she could probably sneak in some poetry, Leni might forget so she might need a few reminders, Lana might back off, Lola might bring it up but I think if Lincoln says so she'll back off."

"That just leaves Lori," Luna said.

"Oh I don't think we have to worry about Lori, out of all of us she'll be the most understanding," Luan said. "I mean if this was Ronnie Anne then maybe we'd have something to worry about."

"Speaking of Ronnie Anne, you think Lori would be cool with Lincoln dating another girl that isn't Bobby's little sister?" Luna asked.

"Huh? Of course she would," Luan said. "Lincoln and Ronnie Anne broke it off, what they had was just a crush anyway and they're still friends, so if Ronnie Anne wouldn't care I don't think Lori would. Plus she's never said anything when Lincoln had a crush afterwards, first with that girl from the Arcade, now with Stella."

"Girl from the arcade?" Luna asked.

"Remember the love letter mystery?" Luan asked. "Lincoln mentioned a girl named Paige."

"Oh right, I think we were all too caught up in our own romances that I totally forgot," Luna said. "Thinking about it, we were the only ones who got someone out of that, you got Benny and I got Sam."

"I guess we just got lucky, I'm sure our other sisters will too," Luan said. "Same with Lincoln."

"Well he's got time, he's a great looking kid, soon he'll have girls banging on this door," Luna said. "I mean it's easy for us to say that because we're his sisters, but I honestly believe he has what it takes to be a great boyfriend."

"Yeah, I wish there were more guys like Lincoln, he's a sweetheart of a little brother," Luan said. "Little manipulative at times, and maybe occasionally self centered, but haven't we all been? In a house like this you can't be passive, it gets really wild."

"Yeah, it's like a jungle here, not all fun and games," Luna said. "We may be a wild pack, and we fight among each other, but like a good pack, we also take care of and look out for each other, right now we gotta look out for our little bro, and keep him safe from his 'favorite sister'."

Luan chuckled a bit, then had a thought, "Say, do you think Lincoln actually does have a favorite sister?"

"Pfft, I doubt it," Luna said. "Lincoln loves us all the same, he wouldn't pick favorites."

"I don't know," Luan said. "I mean yeah I'm sure he loves us all the same, but I'm sure there's some of us he'd rather hang out with than others, honestly sometimes I wonder if he considers you his favorite."

"Huh? Why me?" Luna asked. "I mean yeah we get along, but I don't think I've been closer with him than any of the other sisters."

"I'm not sure, maybe because you've been less...unfriendly to him?" Luan said.

"Less unfriendly?" Luna asked. "Dude I once blasted him out of our room with my amp, and I threw my entire drum kit at him, I've even threatened to punch him on occasion, I am not the least unfriendly sister to Lincoln. I'm not proud of what I did, so I'll own up to mistakes."

"Still, I do prank him a lot, so I'm definitely not his favorite to be around," Luan said.

"To be fair, you prank everyone," Luna said. "Look we've all been unfriendly to each other and to Lincoln, but we still love each other all the same, and so does Lincoln. I honestly don't think he has a favorite, because while he doesn't always like to admit it, he loves being around all of us, and we've all had our special moments with him. For me, it was that Smooch concert, for you it's when you bonded after he became your Funny Business assistant. Don't overthink this favorite sister thing, it's just some baloney that Lynn's coming up with because she thinks she's better than she actually is."

"Wow, that's deep," Luan said. "But fair point I guess."

"Now like I said, we need to keep an eye on Lynn, knowing her she'll find a way to turn this into complete chaos and we both know we don't want Lincoln to lose out on a friendship," Luna said.

"Yeah, I would never want that to happen to him," Luan said. "Though if I'm being honest, I really want him and Stella to be together, she's really cute and she compliments Lincoln much better than any other girl we've seen."

"Even better than Ronnie Anne?" Luna asked.

"Ronnie Anne's a nice girl, but Stella has something special to her, maybe it's just me though," Luan said. "What about you? Who do you think he's better off with?"

"Honestly, kinda wish he ended up with Tabby," Luna said.

"Tabby? Oh right, that girl you set Lincoln up with when you thought he didn't have a date to the dance." Luan chuckled a bit, "I almost feel bad for what happened to Lincoln that night."

"Yeah, little bro needs to be more honest with us about his feelings though," Luna said.

"And maybe we should try listening more," Luan admitted. "Maybe Lincoln wouldn't be so sneaky if he felt he could trust us."

"Trust is a two way street sis, but you're right, at least he handled himself well, that's our little Man with a Plan," Luna said, getting a chuckle out of both of them. "Well I'm gonna go work on that song, what about you?"

"I'm gonna check on Lincoln one more time, I don't want him to end this day on a sour note," Luan said.

"Neither of us want a sour note," Luna joked, getting a laugh from Luan.

"Good one, looks like I'm rubbing off on you," Luan said.

"Hey maybe you can rock out at your next party," Luna said. "I'll be there shredding away myself."

"Ha, that'd be great, you, me and Lincoln can entertain the next show...just don't try to crowd surf if there's little kids," Luan said.

"I'll mind my audience," Luna assured. "Alright I'll leave you to it, make sure Linc knows that his sisters will love him regardless of where he takes his relationship with Stella."

"Alright, leave it to me," Luan assured. "I'll keep him in high spirts."

Luan made her way upstairs to check on Lincoln while Luna made her way to the kitchen to grab a quick drink before starting her jam session, though still with her little brother on her mind.

"Really hope things don't go too out of control, for Lincoln's sake at least. Lynn better put a limit to her 'helping'," Luna said, grabbing her drink and heading upstairs.


	4. Day at The Park

In Lincoln's room, the boy was seen tidying up his comic collection, making sure they were all properly organized. Perhaps he could show more of these to Stella soon, quite certain she would really appreciate it.

While doing so, he heard a knock on his door. He seemed reluctant to answer, figuring it would be one of his sisters trying to pry more information out of him, but he didn't want to be rude so he took a chance. "Yeah?"

Luan opened the doors, "Heya Linc, mind if I come in?"

"Please don't tell me you want details about tonight," Lincoln said. "I already told you that we just hung out and played arcade games."

"It's not that, well not in the way you think," Luan said. "I just want to chat a bit if you don't mind."

Lincoln shrugged, "Fine, come in."

Luan opened the door all the way, making her way inside. "Quite a day huh?"

"Yeah, it was fun," Lincoln said.

"Stella's a really nice girl, you should bring her by more often," Luan said. "She's got a good sense of humor, and she really seems to like being around you, but that shouldn't be surprising, you're very pleasant to be around."

That took Lincoln by surprise, Luan was being really nice all of a sudden, "You really think so?"

"Well yeah, why wouldn't I think that?" Luan asked. "You are my favorite assistant for Funny Business, and the most reliable."

"Weird I thought I made the bad list the moment I nearly took your gigs," Lincoln said, remembering his falling down stunts.

"You made a mistake, that's all, my mistake was not handling it better, but it turned out alright," Luan said. "Honestly seeing you doing comedic stunts made me a little happy, it gave us a common bond, and it let us be closer."

"Luan, we're always close, aren't we?" Lincoln asked.

Luan rubbed the back of her head, "Well, we kind of are, but I just felt like we didn't have too much in common, I mean you and Luna both like music, you always help Lucy with her poetry you're great at making clothes like Leni is, even if you just use it for your nerdy costumes."

"Hey!" Lincoln said, slightly offended.

"Sorry, it's your thing and I know I should respect that, but my point is that doing Funny Business gave us a bond," Luan said. "I mean I know I'm probably not your most favorite sister but at least-"

"Whoa, hold on there," Lincoln said. "Not my most favorite sister? Where did you get that idea?"

"Sorry, it's nothing, forget I said that," Luan said. "I'll leave you alone for the night, I'm sure you just want to get ready for bed, so I'll get out of your hair, goodnight."

As Luan started making her exit, Lincoln called out to her. "Luan, you know I love you right?" Lincoln almost felt his stomach turn from saying something so sappy, but he figured his sister needed to hear this. "Even when you make annoying puns, even when you prank me, even when you drive me crazy, I still love you regardless."

Luan just stood there a moment, taking everything in. Lincoln wasn't sure what to make of the sudden silence, until she turned around, big teary eyes now animate on her face. She rushed over to pull him into a tight hug, "You're such a sweetheart Linc!" She planted a few kisses on his face for added affection.

"Aw, come on Luan, this is embarrassing!" Lincoln complained.

Luan giggled as she let him go, "Sorry about that, I couldn't help it. You're a sweet little brother Lincoln, I'm sorry if it seems like I've taken that for granted."

"Well I know I'm not always easy to put up with either, so I hope you know I don't take any of you for granted either," Lincoln said.

"I know you don't, well I'm off to my room, goodnight again," Luan said, making her exit. "Oh, by the way, Lynn might be a little...pushy again, just a forewarning."

Lincoln sighed in annoyance, "Yeah, I'm sure she will."

"We'll keep her in line," Luan said. "Just leave it to your reliable older sisters. Sleep tight Lincoln!"

After bidding her goodnights, Luan returned to her room, laying happily on her bed. Luna came in a few seconds later, noticing her sister's happy state. "Someone's in a good mood."

"Yeah, well I'm feeling lucky," Luan sat up to face her roommate. "We seriously have the best brother in existence."

"What you're just realizing that now?" Luna teased. "Of course we have the best bro, he looks out for us, what more can you ask for in a brother."

"What more can you ask for in a boy?" Luan said. "Think about it, Lincoln is the perfect boyfriend material, he understands girls, he's got a sensitive side, he's also a good listener and knows how to make someone feel better!"

"We all know that Luan, that's why we get so excited when Linc shows interest in a girl, because we get to see how happy our brother can make a girl feel," Luna said. "Linc represents the type of boyfriend all our sisters would want."

"Weird to think about, our idea of an ideal boyfriend is someone who's like our brother," Luan said. "Is that weird?"

"Depends on how you view it, then again it can't relate to me that well since I'm dating a girl," Luna said. "Just think though, compare Benny to Lincoln and see how you feel later."

"Lincoln to Benny?" Luan wondered, then thought about both boys and any similarities they might have.

During their talk, Vanzilla had pulled up on the driveway, Lynn Sr and Lori exiting and making their way inside.

"Man I'm beat, that was a lot of supplies to bring in," Lynn Sr said. "Well I should go get ready for bed, your mom should be home soon, if she's not already."

"Yeah I'm gonna get ready too, but first I want to check in on Lincoln," Lori said.

"Oh right, he had a friend over, a young girl too," Lynn Sr chuckled to himself. "That's my son, really knows how to get the girls, takes after your old man, I was quite the stud back in my day."

Lori glared awkwardly at her father, "I literally didn't need to know that." She started making her way upstairs, trying to forget her father's cringe inducing words.

She passed through the hallways toward Lincoln's door, giving it a quick knock.

"Come in!" Lincoln said, wondering who this was now, and hoping it's not a sister wanting to give him some extra tips. He looked surprised to see Lori making her way inside.

"Hey Lincoln, just came by to check on you," Lori said. "So, how was it with your friend today?"

"Uh...it was fun," Lincoln said, little cautious as to why Lori was asking him this. "How's Bobby doing?"

"He's fine, so is Ronnie Anne," Lori said. "They were quite disappointed that you weren't there today."

Hearing Ronnie Anne's name being mentioned filled Lincoln with some slight worry, while she knew he wouldn't be there, he did feel some guilt for not meeting with her.

"Well I wish I could have been there, but I had plans of my own after all," Lincoln said.

"Yeah, I know that obviously," Lori said with a hint of an attitude.

Lincoln wasn't sure what to think at this moment, he couldn't tell what Lori's mood was or what she was even up to. "So...is that all?"

"How did the girls react when your friend came over?" Lori asked.

"Her name is Stella, and they reacted as normal, they thought she was my girlfriend or that I wanted her to be my girlfriend," Lincoln said.

"What did you tell them?" Lori asked.

"...That she wasn't, Stella and I just friends and we intend to keep it that way," Lincoln said.

Something about that lifted some weight off Lori's shoulders, suddenly she felt less tense. "Well that's good to hear, and it sounds like you two had fun, and I can trust that you still acted like a proper gentleman with her."

"I know how to treat my friends Lori," Lincoln said. "And Stella had fun, she's even coming to the park with me and the twins tomorrow."

"Well, seems like you two are really getting along nicely, well I'll leave you be for the night," Lori said, making her way out of the room. "Goodnight little brother."

Lincoln wasn't sure what to make of Lori's demeanor, she seemed slightly agitated about something. Perhaps she was just annoyed he never came to Great Lakes, likely assuming him to be lazy in not wanting to help. Truthfully if it wasn't for Stella coming over, he would have likely had to do as he had no other friend to replace Clyde.

"Maybe Lori just needs a good night sleep, hopefully she'll be better tomorrow, otherwise I'm gonna have to either find a way to lighten her mood, or avoid her at all costs," Lincoln said. He resumed getting ready for bed when his computer started making noise, someone was trying to contact him. "Huh? A live chat? Maybe it's Clyde."

He opened the page and instead of seeing his best friend of Royal Woods, he saw his best friend of Great Lakes. "Sup Lame-O?"

"Oh, hey Ronnie Anne, what's up?" Lincoln asked.

"Nothing, figured I'd check up on you. I know you said you couldn't make it today, but I figured we still got technology, why not make some use of that?" Ronnie Anne said.

"Clever as always, so I take it that today was busy?" Lincoln asked.

"Yeah, I mean I didn't have to do much, it was mostly your dad, Bobby, my Uncle and my mom," Ronnie Anne explained. "The Grandparents and cousins helped a little too, except for Carlotta, who as she said, didn't want to break a nail. Typical teenagers, treating the littlest thing like a major crisis."

"I know that feeling, I do have five teenage sisters, though I'd say Lori and Leni are the worst, and Lynn too when it comes to sports," Lincoln said.

"Right, so you and McBride had your fun today?" Ronnie Anne asked.

"Actually, Clyde couldn't make it, he had to go somewhere with his dads," Lincoln explained.

"Huh? He bailed?" Ronnie Anne asked. "Wait Lori said you were with a friend, who was it if it wasn't McBride? One of those other dorks you hang around with?"

"Rusty, Liam and Zach? No it was a new friend who just transfered here to Royal Woods some weeks back," Lincoln said.

"A new friend? Well glad to know you're expanding your circle, something we can both relate to," Ronnie Anne said. "So tell me about this friend of yours, what's he like?"

"Oh it's not a 'he', it's a 'she', her name's Stella," Lincoln said.

Ronnie Anne couldn't explain it, but something about that statement nearly dried up her mouth, leaving her almost speechless. "S-she?"

"Yeah, she's really cool, and she likes Ace Savvy too, we saw the recent Ace Savvy movie together, we had a lot of fun doing so," Lincoln said.

"...Right, I'm sure it was," Ronnie Anne said. "So, this girl...how close are you two?"

"Well for a while she was just part of my group of friends, but after today she may become more than that," Lincoln said, getting wide eyes from Ronnie Anne. "We may become closer besties, she could be my best friend like Clyde, and you."

"R-right, best friends," Ronnie Anne said. "So...you two are just friends?"

"Yeah, she's not looking for a boyfriend, she just wants friends to spend time with, so that's what I'm for," Lincoln said.

Ronnie Anne felt some relief upon hearing that, even though she doesn't fully know why, it's not like she should care what Lincoln does. "That's cool of you Lincoln, you're a dork but you're also considerate, that's what makes you such a pleasure to be around."

"Wow Ronnie Anne, that was actually really nice of you to say," Lincoln said.

"Pfft, don't act all surprised!" Ronnie Anne snapped, surprising Lincoln a bit.

"Right, sorry. I shouldn't be surprised, you're a great kid Ronnie Anne, and I'm happy to call you my friend," Lincoln said.

"You better be," Ronnie Anne said, smirking through her tough attitude. "Well it's late, I'll let you off, night Linc."

"Yeah, goodnight Ronnie," Lincoln said, shutting off the computer. "That felt different, but interesting. Well off to bed."

Back in Great Lakes, Ronnie Anne had turned off her own computer and started to think about what Lincoln had been saying. "I shouldn't care that he has another friend that's a girl, lots of guys have friends that are girls, heck I got two friends that are guys, it's nothing." Ronnie Anne went to bed with that mindset, at least she tried to, somewhere some doubt lingered in her head.

The next morning in Royal Woods was another average Loud morning, though since it was Sunday, it meant some of the sisters or Lincoln were likely sleeping in, making for a shorter line to the bathroom.

The rest of the morning was mostly uneventful, with the exception of Lori telling the others about her trip to Great Lakes.

"So while Bobby was lifting the box, a huge bird flew right by his head, freaking him out and causing him to drop it, spilling a weeks worth of pickles all over the sidewalk," Lori said. "His grandfather was not happy."

"Sounds like got himself into a real pickle there," Luan said, chuckling to herself. "Get it?"

The siblings muttered in agreement, though rather annoyed the the lame pun.

"I bet it was nice seeing Bobby again," Leni said.

"It always is, but I know this distance is only temporary and if anything it will fuel our love for each other that much more," Lori said, then briefly eyed. "It's amazing what patience can do for romance." Lincoln caught her eyeing him, though he had no idea why she did so, that was actually a bit random for him. "So Lincoln, off to the park soon?"

"Uh, yeah, I'm going to be meeting Stella there with the twins," Lincoln said.

"Too bad you weren't here to see Stella yesterday Lori, she was really nice," Leni said. "She's cute too, really great fashion sense."

"Well I have seen her before Leni so it's not like I missed that much, the way Lincoln made it sound, it was just another day with Clyde, except that instead of Clyde it was Stella," Lori said.

"Well she was really cool to be around," Luan said. "She really liked my jokes, I can respect someone who appreciates the fine art of comedy."

"And she'd make the perfect girl for Lincoln," Lynn said, getting an annoyed glare from her brother as well as her older sisters, aside from Leni.

"Let me guess, you were trying to play matchmaker right?" Lori asked.

"Duh, it's what we do," Lynn said.

"Well maybe don't do that, if Lincoln wants to be just friends with her, then I say leave them be," Lori said.

"Good call sis," Luna said. "It's their choice, not ours."

"And again, Stella's not interested in having a boyfriend," Lincoln said.

"Lots of girls say that, then not a week later, they're eyeing some guy," Lynn said.

"What are you speaking from experience?" Luna asked.

Lynn scoffed at that, "I never said I didn't want a boyfriend, and you already know about my crush so it's not like I have anything to hide."

"Did you ever get back to him on that?" Luan asked. "Maybe instead of worrying about whether or not Lincoln has a girlfriend, why not go for the boy you know you like?"

"I'm working on it," Lynn said. "Also don't turn this around on me, we were talking about Stella."

"And now we're done," Lincoln said. "Look I need to get ready so that-"

Lincoln was interrupted by a surprise ringing of a door bell, which their father answered. "I'll get it!" He opened the door to see a familiar young girl.

"Oh hello, you must be Mr. Loud, I'm Stella, one of Lincoln's friends," Stella introduced to the Loud Family Patriarch.

"Oh so you're the Stella my son keeps going on about, yeah come in, welcome to my home," Lynn Sr said.

"Thanks, it's a nice house, great interior and exterior design," Stella said.

"Well aren't you a charming young lady, my son really knows how to pick 'em," Lynn Sr called out to his son. "Lincoln, your friend Stella is here!"

"Stella?" Lincoln got off the couch to greet his friend, his sisters eagerly turning their attention to the girl. "Thanks for letting her in dad."

"No prob son," he leaned down to whisper into Lincoln's ear. "So, this girl, is she really just a friend?"

"Dad..." Lincoln said, not wanting to hear this from his father too.

"Right, none of my business, well I'm heading back to the kitchen," Lynn Sr said.

"Hurry honey, the roast is burning!" he heard Rita call out.

"Oh dang it, not again!" Lynn Sr shouted, heading into the kitchen to save the meal he was working on.

"Hi Lincoln, nice to see you today," Stella greeted.

"Yeah, you too," Lincoln said. "Little surprised, I didn't think you'd be coming over."

"Well I figured we can go to the park together, plus I kind of wanted to see your sisters again, they were really nice," Stella said.

"Well how about I take you to the living room so we can-" As Lincoln turned around he saw all ten sisters standing right behind him. "Ah!"

"Hi girls," Stella greeted.

"Hi Stella," the sisters sans Lori and Lily greeted, the latter simply waving.

"Come on, what did you all hitch a ride with Lucy or something?" Lincoln asked, feeling frustrated by the unintentional scare.

"Sorry about that bro," Luna said.

"Though it is odd how you couldn't hear ten sets of footsteps approaching you from behind," Lisa pointed out.

"But we were just as happy to see Stella as you were," Luan said.

"Good to hear," Stella said, then noticed Lori among them. "Oh, you're...Loki?"

"Lori," the elder sibling dryly said.

"Right, Lori! Silly of me to forget, me and Lincoln were just talking about you yesterday, it's nice to see you again," Stella said. "How's your boyfriend?"

"He's good, thanks for asking," Lori said.

Stella turned her attention back to Lincoln, "Wow, all of your sisters are really nice, I don't know why our other friends are so reluctant to come here."

"To be fair, a lot of our friends get nervous coming here," Lola said.

"Especially after that Friend Card incident," Luna said.

"It was quite a _Friendzy_," Luan said, laughing to herself. "Get it?"

"Man, how do you just come up with these puns Luan?" Stella asked.

"It's a gift," Luan said with a proud smile.

"Wish you could wrap it for me," Stella said, getting a chuckle from Luan.

"Good one, see that was clever," Luan said.

"Alright, alright, let's not get carried away here," Lola said. "We all know we don't want another Luan, we can barely control the one we have now."

Luan started giggling after that, "Wow, you really put the lol in Lola."

"Hey don't turn my name into a pun!" Lola shouted at her elder sister.

Lana made her way over to Lincoln, "So can we go to the park now? I have some mud that needs my attention."

"You better not get it on my dress like last time," Lola said.

"Big deal, you have like a million others," Lana said.

"Not, the, POINT!" Lola shouted, getting in Lana's face.

"Hey, cut that out or we're not going!" Lincoln warned, then turned to Stella. "Starting to wonder if bringing you was a good idea, I don't want you getting mixed up in a twin fight."

"Then let me come, little brother," Lynn said, almost sinsiterly for Lincoln's liking.

"Why...?" Lincoln asked, almost dreading the answer.

"Because it wouldn't be fair to you, I mean you won't get to spend a lot of time with your 'friend' if you have to worry about the twins," Lynn said.

"I think we'll be fine," Lincoln insisted. "I'm sure you have better things to do with your day than watch over the twins."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Lola asked, looking displeased.

"Yeah, what is that supposed to mean?" Lana said, matching Lola's displeased look.

Lincoln groaned in annoyance, "Look I'm sure Stella won't mind that I'm watching over the twins, she knew that when we talked about this last night."

"But Stella also wants to spend more time with your sisters right? Last I checked, I'm one of your sisters, so this way she gets to know me, I might be her favorite of the bunch too," Lynn said.

"Hey don't start with that!" Luna warned.

"Always wanting to be number one, huh Lynn?" Lucy said.

"She's the number one blockhead," Luan taunted.

Lincoln turned to Stella, "We should leave, now."

"Actually I wouldn't mind if anymore of your sisters came, I would love it if they all could come," Stella said.

"That's unlikely that all ten of my sisters would want to spend a day at the park with you and me," Lincoln said.

Cut to the park later that day, Lincoln and Stella are standing in the middle of a group of twelve, the sole boy having a bemused look on his face.

"How did this happen?" Lincoln wondered.

"Well we're here," Luan said. "Who's got some ideas?"

"Well I want to play on the slides," Lola said, making her way to the playground.

"I'm off to the mud pile," Lana said, making her way to the nearest mud pile.

"I shall be searching for any lose particles, including any dropped coins," Lisa said, pulling out a metal detector and walking along the path.

"I will be in the shadows, away from this blinding sun," Lucy said, seemingly floating away toward the shades.

"I think I just saw Becky and Dana, we should go say 'hi' Lori," Leni said.

"Sure thing Leni," Lori said, grabbing Lily and, walking off with her year younger sister, quickly glancing at Lincoln and Stella.

"Well, that just leaves us," Lynn said. "I'm gonna go to the courts and see if anyone wants to test their skills against me, you two call me if you need anything." Lynn began to walk off, before turning around, "And I do mean anything..."

Lincoln glared slightly at his sister, then turned to Stella, Luna and Luan. "So what now?"

"I'm going to find a Gazebo and shred, if you three wanna come along," Luna said.

"I'd love that," Stella said.

"Actually I'm going to provide a little entertainment for the kids here," Luan said, grabbing her glasses with the nose and mustache, along with some balloons. "If you need a laugh, come find me."

"I'll keep that in mind," Stella said.

"I know you will," Luan said, walking off to entertain all the nearby guests.

"Alright, you two are my first audience, let's get rocking," Luna said, making her way to a Gazebo while Lincoln and Stella followed. Unbeknowest to them, Lynn was nearby, a scheming look in her eyes.

"Time to get to work," Lynn snuck over to meet with her targets.

At the Gazebo, Luna tuned up her guitar as Lincoln and Stella sat next to each other, eagerly awaiting her first song.

"Alright, here's one I just finished, hope you like it," Luna said, then began shredding away on her guitar.

Lincoln and Stella seemed to enjoy it so far, both rocking their heads a little before going into full out rocker mod, bopping their heads back and forth and doing air guitars trying to match Luna's. The rocker sister seemed to appreciate how much the two kids liked her playing, even more so when she noticed other bystanders taking time to notice her guitar playing.

"She's so talented!" Stella said, still rocking out.

"Yeah, she's amazing isn't she! She practices every chance she gets too," Lincoln said.

"She's definitely going to be a Rockstar someday," Stella said.

As Luna played her tunes, Lynn snuck over, trying to get her attention, but the rocker girl was too into her music to notice. So Lynn grabbed a pebble and tossed right into the back of her neck. Luna hadn't turned around yet, only rubbing her neck since she felt what she thought was a bug. Lynn tossed another one, getting Luna behind the ear, finally getting her attention.

"Lynn? What are you doing?" Luna asked.

"Hey, try playing that love song of yours," Lynn said.

"It's not done, wait why do you want me to-" Luna immediately put the pieces together. "Oh you really are something else Lynn."

"Hey you know it could work," Lynn said.

"They're not interested, look I'm done with this plan, don't come to me and rope me into your schemes," Luna said.

"Come on Lunes, don't you want our brother to be happy?" Lynn asked.

"Yeah, I do, that's why I ain't doing your stupid plan, now buzz off!" Luna said, playing louder.

"Hey, don't you ignore me!" Lynn said, attempting to pull the cord from the amp, which Luna immediately noticed.

"Hey don't touch my gear!" Luna shouted, shoving Lynn away, ending her abruptly ending her concert, to the confusion of everyone around.

"Hey what happened?" Lincoln asked, then noticed Luna and Lynn pulling at the cord to the amp. "Lynn!"

"Let go of my cord!" Luna shouted.

"Only if you do what I say!" Lynn shouted back.

"What's going on!" Lincoln shouted, getting their attention, but accidentally causing the cord to snap.

"Dude! You're getting me a new one!" Luna shouted.

"Ugh, fine, but maybe next time try to listening when others are trying to talk to you," Lynn said.

Luan looked like she was ready to flip out, fortunately Lincoln sensed this and gently his stroked his sister's back, "Easy Luna, it's not worth it, people are watching, including Stella."

Luna turned to the side and saw the disappointed park goers who were really enjoying the music, and a very confused Stella. "Fine..." She gave one last look to Lynn, "Seriously, you're getting me a replacement cord, otherwise I'll rock out all over your face!"

Luna grabbed the rest of her gear and angrily stomped off, but not without talking to Stella, "Sorry about that, you looked like you were having a lot of fun."

"Yeah I was, but what was that about?" Stella asked.

"Don't worry about it, it was just Lynn being stupid, everything's taken care of though, or it will be at least," Luna said, going to put her gear away.

Lincoln angrily turned to Lynn, "Care to explain?"

"Uh...I had a request and she ignored me?" Lynn answered.

Lincoln did the 'Eye on you' gesture before going back to Stella, "Come on, let's go see Luan."

As they walked off, Lynn suddenly had another idea, "When one idea fails, it's onto the next, because Lynn Loud Junior never backs down from a challenge."

Minutes later, Lincoln and Stella found Luan making animal balloons for some little kids, sending them on their way, before noticing her brother and his friend. "Here so soon? I figured Luna would be on it for much longer. I heard the music from here, but it just suddenly ended, what happened?"

"Technical difficulties," Lincoln explained, vague but truthful answer. "I brought your favorite fan."

"Got an animal in mind Stella? I'd be happy to make one for you," Luan said.

"Oh I can't think of one, there's quite a few cool animals," Stella said.

"I get that, but I'd like to make you something," Luan said, then had an idea. She quickly grabbed some red balloons and started working her magic. She then turned around and presented a red star balloon, "Ta-dah, it looks just like the star on your shirt!"

"Oh, thank you so much Luan!" Stella said, grabbing the star. "Space is cool, I bet it would be fun to be among the stars."

"That's one place I wish I could go," Lincoln said. "Imagine walking across Saturn's rings."

"Oh yeah, that planet has such pretty rings," Stella said.

As the two talked about space, Lynn tossed a pebble at Luan to get her attention. "Hey, try making a flower balloon."

"Didn't take you for the flowery type," Luan said.

"Not for me doofus, for Lincoln to give to Stella," Lynn said.

Luan narrowed her eyes at her younger sister, "Are you seriously still matchmaking? Lori said not to do that."

"Hey she tried fixing Lincoln up with Ronnie Anne, she doesn't get to talk," Lynn said.

"Look I don't want anything to do with your crazy plan, so make like a banana and split," Luan said.

"Ugh, fine, I'll do it myself," Lynn said, grabbing the balloons. "Shouldn't be that hard if a dimwit like you can do it."

"H-hey! Put that down!" Luan said, trying to pry the balloons away from Lynn's strong grip.

It didn't take long for Lincoln to see the fighting between the two, "Lynn! Not again!"

Lincoln went to break them up but Lynn lost her grip and Luan tripped over a nearby rock, losing the box and landing hard on on her knee, hurting it in the process. "Ow."

"Luan!" Lincoln checked on his comedian sister. "Hey are you ok?"

"Well I did bang my knee," Luan said, rubbing the sore spot. "But I'm fine."

Lincoln looked over her knee, to his dismay he spotted a cut, "Your bleeding."

"It's nothing Lincoln, don't worry," Luan said, standing up and ignoring the stinging pain.

"I'm gonna go see if Lisa has a first-aid kit, I don't want it to get infected," before Luan could protest, Lincoln ran off to find his genius sister.

Stella looked impressed, Lincoln really takes his role of a brother seriously, even for his older sisters.

"Isn't he overreacting? I mean I get cuts and scrapes all the time and I'm usually just fine," Lynn said. "Once I broke my leg really badly and-"

"Will you save it, nobody cares!" Luan shouted.

"Jeez, dramatic much?" Lynn asked.

"Hey you're the reason I tripped and fell! You made my lose my balloons too! You owe me for those!" Luan shouted.

"Ugh, fine, no big deal anyway," Lynn said, then turned her attention to Stella. "Family drama, nothing new for us."

"Yeah, it looks like it," Stella said, confused by Lynn's attitude lately.

Lincoln had made his way back with Lisa, the young girl having conveniently been nearby. The little genius examined the wound, "Small cut, bleeding but very little consequence, nothing a little spray can't handle," Lisa sprayed the wound, stinging Luan a bit. "And here's a band-aid." Lisa applied the item over the cut. "I even gave you the smiley face one, since you care a great deal about the comedic arts, and to remind you that everything will be alright."

"Thanks Lisa," Luan said, somewhat embarrassed at being treated by a four year old, by a four year old.

Lincoln sighed in relief, then angrily turned to Lynn, "First Luna, now Luan! What the heck is your deal today!?"

"Uh...I asked Luan for an animal and she denied it?" Lynn said.

"Seriously, you're not even gonna try to think of a more original excuse?" Lincoln asked. He turned his attention to Stella, "Now you see why my friends get nervous around my sisters, it gets very chaotic."

"Yeah, you're right, it really does," Stella said.

Lincoln rubbed the back of his head, "Look I don't blame you if you don't want to hang out at my house anymore, I wouldn't want to either."

"Huh? No it's fine, I mean yeah it's chaotic but, well seeing you worry so much over your sister was the sweetest thing I've had the pleasure to see, it's cute how much you love your sisters, and I can be a sucker for those sweet moments," Stella said.

Lincoln nervously chuckled at that, "Well as long as you're not too weirded out."

Luan walked over to Lincoln, placing her arm around his shoulder, "He really is the best brother, and I'm happy you can see that as well, you're a great friend Stella, and if you truly haven't been scared off, we'd love to have you around more."

"It's gonna take more than this to scare me off, besides Lynn was being funny herself," Stella said.

"How?" Lynn asked.

"Just go with it, better than her disliking you and making it harder for Lincoln to be his friend, let alone boyfriend as you so desire," Lisa said.

Lynn groaned angrily, "I'm not done yet, no one's gonna stop me from completing my plan."

Not too far off, Lori was with her friends, all of them still talking when she noticed Lincoln in the distance with Stella and the other sisters. She suddenly began thinking of Ronnie Anne, and her deepest desire to see Lincoln with her boyfriend's little sister.

"Ugh, come on Lori, that's not your call to make," Lori said to herself. That didn't stop Carlotta's warning from returning to her head. "Bobby wouldn't care, would he?"

She had a lot to think about, and it was seriously messing with her head. Unfortunately for Lincoln, his friendship and romance drama was far from over.


	5. Deepening Bonds

Later that day, the kids had come home from the park. Since it was still early enough, Stella decided to spend a little more time at The Loud House.

The sisters of course welcomed her with open arms, except Lori who was neutral. Though Lynn was warned to not try anything else stupid, but they knew deep down she was still gonna do what she wanted, they know her stubbornness.

Stella was invited into the room shared by Luna and Luan, the rocker girl wanting to show off her other musical instruments.

"Wow, you really play all these?" Stella asked as Luna shared her prized possessions.

"Sure do, the electric guitar's my favorite, but I do love other instruments, like my drums." Luna sat down and jammed on her drums a bit, amazing Stella.

"Wow, that's amazing," Stella said. "Plus all the songs you can make from different instruments too, tons of combinations."

"Exactly, most people stick to one instrument, which is fine, but some like to beyond, just like me," Luna said. "You ever interested in playing guitar or something?"

"Me? Well sometimes," Stella said. "I doubt I'd be good, at least not as good as you."

"Hey don't put yourself down, you might have that musical talent," Luna assured. "You just gotta give it a try soon."

"Well I can probably play a piano at least, not very good for a rock band though," Stella said. "More classical music I guess."

"First, all music is dope, rock's my favorite but I appreciate all types of music, even polka," Luna said. "Second a piano player can be in a band, ever heard of keyboard? You can add the style you need to make yourself look rockin'."

"How do I pull that off though?" Stella asked.

"It takes attitude, and some fashion changes," Luna said. "I was pretty plain looking once, until my first concert, it totally transformed me, not just figurately either."

"I find it hard to believe you were plain looking," Stella said. "You just have so much personality."

"Everyone starts small, honestly you look way better than I used to before rock, so I can imagine you one upping me in style," Luna said.

"You're just being nice," Stella said, holding back a blush.

"I don't say these things lightly, now how about we get you started," Luna grabbed some drumsticks and passed them to Stella. "Go nuts on those drums."

"Um, alright, I probably won't have much rhythm though," Stella said.

"Don't worry about rhythm, just go to town," Luna said.

"Alright, you're the boss," Stella said. She started off lightly, giving the drums a few taps. Slowly she started to build up speed, getting into the flow. "Hey I think I'm getting it."

"Yeah, just have fun with it, like my idol Mick Swagger says, music is about having fun," Luna said.

"Oh, I've heard of him, but never really listened to any of his music," Stella said.

Luna looked so taken back by that statement, she couldn't believe what her ears had heard. "We gotta fix that pronto!"

Luna grabbed a radio and started playing the music of her idol, educating Stella on a legendary musician. "You'll thank me for this."

Downstairs Lincoln is grabbing some snacks and drinks for himself and Stella, with assistance from Luan.

"Sounds like Luna's already introducing Stella to her love of music," Lincoln said.

"She wants to be in harmony with your friend," Luan said, then chuckled to herself. "Get it?"

"Uh, yeah, good one," Lincoln said, forcing a smile. "It's nice of her to do so, especially after what happened earlier today."

"Yeah, I think we all have to try to maintain positive vibes," Luan said. "Stella might be cool with Lynn's crazy antics so far, but she could have just been saying that just to reduce the awkward."

"I just hope she doesn't start to stray away like my other friends," Lincoln said.

"I don't think she will, not that easily at least," Luan said. "Even if Lynn does annoy her, she seems quite happy being around the rest of us, especially me and Luna. You've got nothing to worry about, not yet at least."

"Do you have that same worry when you bring a friend over?" Lincoln asked.

"We all have that worry Lincoln, why do you think Lori keeps us away from her friends whenever she brings them over? Even Lisa is hesitant to have Darcy come over for their play dates," Luan explained. "But that's how we find out true friends, not that the ones who don't like coming over are lesser friends, but anyone who can put up with a house of eleven siblings are real keepers."

Lincoln placed everything on a tray, ready to take it to his friend. "Alright, food's ready. Thanks for the assistance Luan."

"No trouble, and don't worry about Stella, she seems to like spending time with you, so that helps too," Luan said. "Just keep being a good friend, it's one of your best qualities."

That caused a small blush from Lincoln, "Wow, thanks Luan." He continued making his way upstairs, a bit surprised by his sister's touching words. Then again his sisters can really show deep affection when they want to.

He had made his way into the shared room of Luna and Luan, the rocker girl showing off her Mick Swagger album, detailing all she knows about the songs and the famous rock star.

"I totally met him once, he's a really nice guy, I just wish I could have said more and not been so star struck," Luna said.

"Didn't you try getting a lock of his hair once?" Lincoln asked, getting Luna's attention.

"Hey bro..." Luna said, then realized what her little brother had revealed. "I mean...what are you talking about?"

"Remember the clogged toilet incident? I asked where you were the previous night and you showed me your trip to Mick Swagger's concert," Lincoln reminded. "Didn't seem so star struck then."

"Watch it bro, or do you want me to tell Stella why the toilet was clogged in the first place?" Luna said in a somewhat playful yet threatening way.

"Fair point," Lincoln said, not wanting to risk such an embarrassing story.

Stella seemed confused, "Am I missing something here?"

"Don't worry about it, anyway looks like little bro's got some snacks for ya, I'll let you two be together in his room," Luna said.

"Wait, my room?" Lincoln asked, never once taking that into account. He just guessed he would hang out with Stella around the house or in one of his sister's rooms, odd as that sounded. He forgot he would have to let her in his room, unless he could try to get out of that. "Are you sure she can't just stay here a little longer? Don't you have any other songs for her to hear?"

"She's your guest, not mine, I think I've hogged her long enough," Luna said. "Why don't you show her your room...just don't let me catch you two making out in there."

"Luna!" Lincoln shouted, feeling highly embarrassed.

Luna laughed it off, "Sorry bro, couldn't help myself. Seriously it's fine, I mean I'm sure you've had Ronnie Anne in your room a couple of times, unless there's something about that you're not telling me."

"Luna..." Lincoln said, getting irritated.

"Sorry, sorry," Luna said, laughing some more. "Not for nothing bro, but you look kind of cute when you get irritated."

"And, we're done here," Lincoln said, gesturing Stella to follow him. "Let's go."

Stella and Luna shared a shrug and chuckle as the young girl followed Lincoln into his room. Unbeknownst to them, Lori had overheard part of the conversation, somewhat eyeing Stella as she made her way into the room belonging to her only brother.

In Great Lakes, the Casagrande Family just had their lunch, the only ones still at the table eating were Bobby, who was laughing at some comics while he ate, Carlotta, who was mostly just checking her phone and Ronnie Anne, who was picking at her food.

"Something bothering you Nini?" Bobby asked, getting Ronnie Anne's attention.

"Huh? Oh it's nothing big bro," Ronnie Anne said, still picking at her food.

"Doesn't seem like nothing," Bobby said. "You know you can tell me if something's bothering you."

"I know," Ronnie Anne said. She was a bit skeptical about talking to him about what was on, mainly since she was worried about him getting the wrong idea, but she also knew he wasn't going to stop asking her, so she might as well just say something. "So Bobby, just a quick, hypothetical question."

"Hypo what?" Bobby asked.

"Just a what-if type question," Ronnie Anne said. "If Lori had a friend that was a boy, would you be jealous?"

Upon hearing that, Carlotta immediately turned her attention to the two siblings as Ronnie Anne awaited her answer.

"Um, if she had a guy friend would I be jealous?" Bobby asked.

"Just curious," Ronnie Anne said.

"Well, no I wouldn't be jealous," Bobby said. "She has friends from school that are guys after all."

"Well, what about the other way around?" Ronnie Anne asked. "Would she be jealous if you have friends that were girls?"

"Nini where is this coming from?" Bobby asked. "Is there something you're not telling me?

"Dude I just told you it's hypothetical, that's all!" Ronnie Anne said, getting a bit annoyed.

"Alright, just asking," Bobby said. "Just remember, boys and girls can be just friends."

"I know, I have guys that are friends, I have Casey, Sameer," Ronnie then spoke softly, "Lincoln..."

Carlotta again looked somewhat alarmed by this, especially her tone of voice.

"Yeah, exactly, and that's perfectly normal to have," Bobby said.

"Yeah, sure, thanks Bobby," Ronnie Anne said, getting up and taking her plate to the kitchen before making her way out the apartment. "I'm gonna go meet Sid, see you later."

Once outside, Carlotta quickly stood up and grabbed a confused Bobby by his arm, "Um, Carlotta?"

"Just come with me!" the older girl said, dragging Bobby away into another room, much to his confusion.

"Hey what's going on!?" Bobby asked.

"Did you catch any of that!?" Carlotta asked, getting another confused reaction from Bobby.

"Catch what?" Bobby asked.

"Her question, her tone of voice, the fact that she was picking at her food!" Carlotta said.

"Well, yeah, obviously I caught her question, she aimed it at me!" Bobby said.

"And why do you think she did so?" Carlotta asked.

Bobby scratched his head, still confused by his cousin's actions, "Because she had something on her mind?"

"Look something's obviously bothering her, and it has to do with Lori's little brother," Carlotta said.

"Huh? You mean Lincoln? What does little bro have to do with this?" Bobby asked.

"When she was mentioning her guy friends, she barely mentioned Lincoln's name, does that set anything off in your mind Bobby?" Carlotta asked.

Bobby took a while to think this over, then had a sudden realization, "Wait, you think it has to do with a crush or something?"

"Yes! Exactly! Ronnie totally has a crush on Lincoln!" Carlotta said.

"Hold on, now I'm confused," Bobby said. "What does her asking about boys and girls being friends have to do with Lincoln? What does she think Lincoln will get jealous because she's friends with Sameer and Casey?"

"Ugh, right, you don't know," Carlotta said.

"Don't know what? Is there something you're not telling me cuz?" Carlotta asked.

"Alright, don't tell anyone, but I think Lincoln has a friend back home that's a girl, and I think Ronnie Anne found out about it," Carlotta said.

"Linc has a friend that's a girl?" Bobby asked. "That's new, who is she?"

"I don't know much about her, you'd have to ask Lori," Carlotta said. "We were hoping not to tell you yet, but given what Ronnie Anne just said, I think now's a good time for you to be in the loop."

"Wait, are you suggesting that Ronnie Anne is jealous of this girl?" Bobby asked. "Carlotta, they're just friends, I don't think she's gonna care that Lincoln has another friend that's a girl. If she cared then why would she introduce Lincoln to her other friend Nikki? If Lincoln can be ok with Nini having two guy friends then I'm sure she can be fine with Lincoln having a female friend. In the end, they're all just that, friends."

"Ugh, you're so naïve Bobby, I mean, did you forget about the tone in Ronnie Anne's voice?" Carlotta asked.

"Uh? What about it?" Bobby asked.

"Come on dude, that's your little sister, think!" Carlotta said. "She sounded upset, why do you think that is!?"

Bobby thought harder again, "Uh, I can't tell. Honestly it's hard to know exactly what my sister is thinking, especially if she won't tell me what's bothering her."

"Here's what I think, Lincoln got a female friend, Ronnie Anne found out and now she's both jealous and depressed because the boy she obviously has a crush on might find another girl to like instead!" Carlotta explained. "Now do you understand why she's so unhappy!?"

Bobby had his doubts of course, he didn't think his sister would get like that. "I think you're probably overthinking it, for all we know it could be something else. Maybe one of her current guy friends has a crush on her and she's not interested, or maybe one of her friends is jealous of Lincoln, I can't say but I don't think Nini would get jealous because Lincoln's friends with a girl. She's told me time and again, she and Lincoln are just friends, honestly I'd rather it stay that way, I love my sister but she can be a handful, and while she cares about Lincoln, she can be a bit rough and has upset him before, I don't think either of them are ready for something like that. If things got bad between them, it would make things awkward between me and Lori."

"But if she has a crush on him Bobby, we gotta help them get together!" Carlotta said. "I mean Ronnie Anne dating your girlfriend's only brother, it's too good to pass up! Plus think of the money we'll save on weddings if you all do it together or something."

"Whoa! I can barely think about marriage Carlotta, let alone imagine my sister doing something like that," Bobby said. "Look I'm not playing matchmaker with my sister, it's not worth it alright, so just drop it."

Before Carlotta could continue, Bobby made his way out of the room, not wanting to hear any more of this. This frustrated the teen girl, "Ugh, you're such a dope Bobby."

Outside the Casagrande apartment, Ronnie Anne is slowly walking to her friend's apartment, these thoughts still prevalent in her head.

"Ugh, stupid emotions, maybe if you were more helpful back when I lived in Royal Woods, this wouldn't be so frustrating!" Ronnie Anne shook her head. "What am I even going on about, it's not like I even like Lincoln that way, let him be friends with that Stella girl, let him get together with her for all I care." Ronnie Anne grew frustrated, pulling her hoodie over her head, "Why am I feeling this way all of a sudden!"

Ronnie Anne took a breath, not wanting to let this get to her, "I just need to relax, take my mind off things, Sid can help me with that, she's good at lightening the mood." Ronnie Anne continued walking over to the apartment of her best friend, doing her best to stay relaxed on the way.

Back in Royal Woods, Lincoln was showing off his entire Ace Savvy collection to Stella, from comic books, to action figures, to movies. Needless to say the freckled girl was highly impressed by Lincoln's collection.

"Wow, how long did this take you?" Stella asked.

"Pretty much my whole life," Lincoln said. "I've been a fan of Ace Savvy for as long as I can remember."

Stella looked around some more and found a picture of a younger Lincoln and Clyde dressed up a Ace Savvy and One-Eyed Jack. "Wow, you two love your cosplay."

"Well I first met Clyde while Trick-Or-Treating, he was Jack, I was Ace, since then we've been dressing up and pretending to be them for a lot of things, including solving mysteries," Lincoln said.

"Aw, that's cute," Stella said.

"Oh, it's not just cute, we do real stuff Stella," Lincoln said. "Like the time we were trying to figure out which one of our pets was tracking mud all over the floor...though that turned out to be Lana."

Stella giggled at the thought, it was both funny and cute. "I'm sure your parents appreciated that."

"Sure did, then there was the time me and Clyde helped Leni get her job back after she got fired for something she didn't do," Lincoln said.

"Wow really? What happened?" Stella asked.

"Some clothes went missing in her department of a store, her manager thought she was swiping them for herself, turns out her son was taking the clothes and using them as superhero capes," Lincoln explained.

"Oh wow, well it's a relief that you were able to help your sister, that was really nice of you," Stella said.

"There's nothing I wouldn't do for my sisters, I couldn't stand by and see a girl as sweet as Leni take the blame for something she didn't do," Lincoln said.

"Leni doesn't seem like the type to do that anyway, she seems so pure hearted," Stella said. "She must be easier to get along with I would think."

"Yeah, Leni almost never gets on my nerves, I mean sometimes but only when she's being ditzy, but she's not trying to annoy me at least," Lincoln said. "Or she doesn't mean to annoy me better said. The only time we're at odds is if all my sisters are mad at me, they have a tendency to show a hive mentality."

"A hive mentality?" Stella asked, staring at Lincoln in disbelief. "Lincoln, that's silly, maybe you're just imagining things, I can't imagine they all suddenly share a brain or something like that."

"You'd be surprised, even my more rational sisters can fall for stupid things, I'd give you a few examples, but they're a bit embarrassing, and some...I'd just rather not get into," Lincoln said, repressing some unpleasant memories.

"Embarrassing huh?" Stella asked. "Does this have to do with that toilet incident Luna mentioned?"

Lincoln's face turned red as he quickly shook his head no, "Uh, no, it was something else, hehe."

"Lincoln..." Stella said, not buying it.

"Come on Stella, it was nothing," Lincoln said.

"Look I just want to know what this 'Hive Mentality' really is, your sisters all have different personalities, how could they suddenly share one common opinion?" Stella asked.

Lincoln began to sweat a bit, this was obviously embarrassing to talk about, but Stella seemed highly insistent on hearing this. Figuring this would be easier to explain than certain other situations, he figured why not, can't hurt to tell a friend.

"Weird, I almost never talk about this stuff with Clyde," Lincoln said. "I don't know if it's because girls are more open than boys or what."

"I can't speak for all girls, but I do like openness," Stella admitted. "Go on, tell me."

"Alright, see a few months back we had a problem where our toilet got clogged," Lincoln said. "Now it's not the first time this has happened, but this time was bigger. Dad was unhappy about the toilet getting clogged again and until whoever did it fessed up, we were all in trouble. My sisters all blamed me, because I may or may not have clogged the toilet before by throwing a bunch of things in there, like my dad's dorky CDs."

"CDs?" Stella said, finding this hard to believe.

"Hey you should have heard them, even Luna hated it, and she loves music," Lincoln said. "Point is my sisters were all quick to point the finger at me, not one of them gave me the benefit of the doubt, and that time I didn't really do it!"

"If you did it before though, it's hard to blame your sisters for thinking you did it, it's not a hive mind, it's just common sense," Stella said. "If Lana had done something like that over and over again, wouldn't you be quick to think she did it if that happened again?"

"Well...ok I see your point," Lincoln said. "Thing is, earlier that day, all my sisters laughed at me when I came out of my room in my Ace Savvy costume."

"Again, I find it hard to believe that's having a Hive Mind," Stella said.

"All my sisters laughing? Not one of them finding it cool?" Lincoln said. "Or at least impressed that I made it by myself, I mean I figured at least Leni would appreciate fine sewing, but she just laughed at me like all the other sisters."

"Come on Lincoln, did that really bother you?" Stella asked.

"No, but it's not the point," Lincoln said. "All they could say was that I was dorky, or that I had my underwear on the outside."

"...You had your underwear outside your suit?" Stella asked.

"That's what Superheroes do! Sometimes at least," Lincoln said. "Why laugh at that? Like they've never seen me in my underwear, or like I've never seen theirs."

"Alright, getting a bit too personal there Lincoln," Stella said, looking a little weirded out.

"Right sorry, anyway I'm sorry if I sound like I'm complaining, like I said, I love my sisters, but it can be frustrating when they develop this ten against one scenarios against me," Lincoln said. "Imagine not being able to speak your mind because you have ten sisters against you, I mean, I hate to play the gender card here, but it's like it's easier to blame the only boy of the family, because only boys can be gross or annoying."

"Well tell me, did you clog the toilet?" Stella asked.

"...No, I didn't, one of my other sisters did," Lincoln said.

"See, and I'm sure they were sorry for thinking you did it," Stella said.

"Actually I never told them who did it, I took the blame," Lincoln said.

Stella looked surprised at hearing this, wondering if his parents simply didn't believe him or if that sister hid it well enough, or even threatened him to keep his mouth shut. She didn't want to think that any of his sisters were that cruel though, so she had to inquire. "Well, how come they never found out?"

"I just took the blame, simple as that," Lincoln said.

"Simple as that?" Stella asked. "I know you love your sisters and you said you would do anything for them, but if they were laughing at you, why would you willingly take the blame?" She leaned in close, "Please don't tell me they forced you to take the blame, your sisters seem nice, I can't imagine they would do something like that."

"No one forced me, I just took the blame, that's all," Lincoln said.

Stella crossed her arms in disproval, "Lincoln, I feel like there's something you're not telling me. Look if this is suppose to be a secret then I promise I won't tell, I just want to understand this better, and I want you to be able to trust me with these things, that way I can help you when you feel like there's a 'Hive Mentality' as you say. Please tell me."

Lincoln tried looking away, not wanting to give in, then that's when Stella used them. She gave him the puppy dog eyes, the worst technique any girl can have. He couldn't bare how cute she looked right now, then felt embarrassed for thinking of her as cute, then felt annoyed again that she would stoop to this.

"Ugh, fine, I'll tell you, but please keep it a secret," Lincoln begged.

"You have my word," Stella said, making a sign of a promise.

"And please don't laugh, it's embarrassing for her," Lincoln said.

"I wouldn't laugh at your sister," Stella said.

Lincoln took a deep breath and confided in his friend, "It was Lucy, she clogged the toilet, and I covered for her."

"Lucy? The goth one right?" Stella asked.

"Yeah, when I found out it was her, using my Ace Savvy skills by the way," Lincoln added, randomly grabbing a deck of cards and posing with them, getting a playful eye roll from Stella. "I told her I would keep it a secret, since it was to embarrassing for her to admit the truth."

"Well, that was really nice of you," Stella said. "How did you get her to tell you?"

"The thing that clogged the toilet was a...Princess Pony book," Lincoln said. "And Lucy's the only one who reads that."

"Wait, a book clogged the toilet?" Stella asked. "How did a book get in there?"

"Lucy reads it in the bathroom after dark so no one knows about it, then one night I walked in while she was in there. I didn't know then because she put the book in the toilet to hide it, but when I flushed the toilet, that's when it got clogged," Lincoln said. "Thinking about it, I guess I technically did clog the toilet. So my sisters weren't tecnically wrong and I technically got rightfully grounded for it. But still."

"Lucy reads Princess Pony?" Stella asked. "That's surprising, I'd expect Lola to read something like that."

"Thing is, all my sisters hate Princess Pony, that's why Lucy has to read it in secret," Lincoln said. "She told me that even she needs a break from the darkness after a while."

"That's relieving to hear," Stella said. "So to cover for Lucy and her hobby, you took the blame?"

"Yeah, she was afraid that our sisters would ridicule her for liking Princess Pony, and when they found out that's what clogged the toilet, they knew whoever did it was reading the book," Lincoln explained. "So I told them it was me, keeping the blame and humiliation off Lucy. I can handle a little teasing so it didn't bother me, what did bug me a little was having to miss an Ace Savvy convention, but it was worth it so Lucy didn't have to go through that. Because my sisters were relentless with their teasing, again nothing I can't handle, it's just who they are, but Lucy would have been devastated."

Stella seemed amazed and somewhat disappointed by what she's heard. To think that Lincoln would take blame, accept punishment and ridicule for something that wasn't his doing just to help his little sister was definitely admirable. She knew Lincoln was a nice boy, but this was a whole different level of nice. But she did have to address one thing, "I still find it terrible that your sisters would make Lucy feel that way, she's just a little girl, you can't blame her for liking Princess Pony, lots of young girls do. I liked it when I was little, I still like it."

"Yeah, but my sisters don't really understand that," Lincoln said.

"It's also a shame they would have to tease you for liking it, or just the idea of you liking it, I mean boys can like that stuff too, I'm sure lots of boys are ok with reading or watching Princess Pony, it's for all ages, whether you're a boy or a girl," Stella said.

"I'm not into it, but I have nothing against it," Lincoln said. "And I think it's cute that Lucy likes it, makes her more adorable to me."

"I hate knowing your sisters are capable of that, did they all really feel that way?" Stella asked. "What about Luna and Luan? They seem the kindest, same with Leni, weren't they understanding?"

"Again, Hive Mentality," Lincoln said. "It can work against them too, one sister can be easily singled out against the others, Luan got singled out once, not proud to admit that I was a part of that. Guess I can share a Hive Mind with my sisters too."

"Guess you should work on that, but have they lightened up?" Stella asked.

"Yeah, they probably forgot about it, or they just stopped caring when they saw I couldn't care less about their insults," Lincoln said.

"Still, it was very sweet," Stella said. "You're a great brother Lincoln, those girls are really lucky to have you."

Lincoln blushed at the compliment, "Really, it's nothing. I just care a lot about my sisters, that's all. When they're happy, I'm happy." Lincoln chuckled a bit, "Mainly since if they're unhappy they'll make me unhappy."

"Heh, Lincoln..." Stella playfully scolded.

"Well, let's move on from this, it's getting a little mushy," Lincoln said, bringing out more of his stuff. "Ooh, my manga panels, I still have them!"

"Manga? You mean like Japanese comics?" Stella asked.

"Yeah, wanna see?" Lincoln said. "I've been itching to learn a bit of Japanese, it helps when I watch the shows these manga are based off with subtitles. I have tons of manga here though, with space karate warriors, aspiring heroes, guys with spirit based powers," He pulled out one from the box. "This one's my favorite, two guys trying to find the Triangle of Power. There's only one way to decide who gets it, they must battle."

"That looks so cool! Mind showing me?" Stella asked.

"I'd love to, let's bust through some of these, comic books and manga," Lincoln said, grabbing a deck of them.

Time passed, soon it was time for Stella to go home, the young girl saying good-bye to each sister before leaving.

"It was nice seeing you all again," Stella said.

"Come back any time," Lola said. "You know where we live now."

"And you're brave enough to stick around too, that's a plus," Lana added.

Stella continued going around, having said her good-byes to Lisa, Lily and Leni as well. She then approached Lucy, taking a moment to observe the young goth. "Lucy..."

"Yeah?" Lucy responded, curious as to why Stella just seemed to be standing there. Suddenly she was pulled into a hug, much to her confusion. "Uh..."

"Don't even be afraid to be who you are," Stella said, rubbing her head a bit before letting go. "Can you remember that?"

"Um...sure thing," Lucy said, a bit weirded out by the hug, not that she totally hated it, but it was a bit embarrassing.

Stella walked over to Luan, "It's been a pleasure Luan, you really know how to liven things up."

"And you're quite the _Stellar_ girl," Luan said.

"You already used that one," Lana pointed out.

"She hasn't heard it yet," Luan insisted. "What you think I'm only going to use a joke once? Not everyone hears my puns."

"Well I look forward to hearing more," Stella said. "I hope I can see you in your Funny Business act soon."

"I've got a party soon, I'll give you the deats, who knows, I might need a second assistant, could get you some extra cash," Luan said.

"Hey I'd work with you for free," Stella said.

"Aw, the real payment would be having you as company Stella," Luan said.

"Ugh, you sound like a flirt," Lola said, much to Luan's annoyance.

Stella quickly moved along before things got awkward and approached Luna, "I'll try to listen to more of your suggestions Luna, guess I still have a lot more to learn about good music."

"Hey any music can be good, but I'm more than happy to hit you up with some sweet tunes," Luna said.

"Thanks...you're a really nice girl Luna, and you've got great sisters, and an amazing brother," Stella said. "I hope that no matter what, you'll always be there for each other, and love each other very much."

Luna looked a little surprised by this sudden sentiment, but she couldn't help but smile down at Stella, "You're a great kid Stella, don't be a stranger now, come back soon."

Stella nodded as she approached Lori, who was mainly on her phone, texting some friends. "It's was nice seeing you today Lori, maybe we can see each other more, I might be coming by more often."

"Uh, yeah, that's great," Lori said, not taking her eyes off her phone.

Stella looked slightly dejected, Lori pretty much paid her no mind, much to the annoyance of the other sisters.

"Lori, seriously?" Luna said under her breath.

"Hey I'm trying to ask Whitney about a sale, don't bother me," Lori said.

"Stella's trying to talk to you!" Luna said.

"Ugh," Lori turned to the young girl. "Alright, bye Stella, yeah I'm sure I'll see you soon."

Stella looked somewhat displeased, but shrugged it off. Somehow she couldn't help but feel that Lori's been in a bad mood all day, maybe Lincoln wasn't exaggerating too much when describing how moody his oldest sister could be.

"Come on Stella," Lincoln said, gesturing her towards the door. "I'll see you at school tomorrow."

"Yeah...say am I missing someone?" Stella said. "I know there was a least one more sister."

"You mean Lynn?" Lincoln asked. "Probably off training, after today I don't think she's worth getting any attention. You should hurry on home."

"Alright, bye Lincoln," Stella said, about to walk out the door, but not before turning around and giving Lincoln a firm hug. "You're the best! See you tomorrow!"

Stella made her way out the house, leaving Lincoln very much surprised. All his other sisters sans Lori had giddy smiles on their faces.

"Someone likes you Linky," Lola teased.

"What? Friends hug! I hug Clyde all the time," Lincoln said.

"Yeah, but that hug seemed much more affectionate," Leni said. "And a whole lot more cuter."

"Gotta admit bro, she did seem to enjoy the contact," Luna said.

Lincoln grew frustrated, "Ugh, I told you-"

"You're just friends, we know," the sisters said in unison.

Lincoln face palmed at this moment as he walked off back to his room, "This is why I call them 'Hive Minded'."

The sisters, except Lori, chuckled a bit at their brother's frustrations, to some it was cute, to others it was just plain funny. Lori however didn't seem amused as she glanced out the window, glaring at Stella as she walked home.

"You're not wrecking anything for me Stella," Lori said, going back to her phone, this time texting her boyfriend Bobby, getting a plan ready.

Outside as Stella had made her way off the property, going up the sidewalk when she heard a voice. "Yo Stella!"

Stella turned to see Lynn making her way over, "Oh, hi Lynn."

"Leaving so soon?" Lynn asked. "I thought you'd be sticking around longer, dad's making his famous Lynn-sagnia."

"Sorry, I'd love to try it, but I really have to get home, but I'll be during the week when I'm able to," Stella said.

"Sure, sounds good," Lynn said. "You know Stella, you and my brother seem to get along quite well, you're both really compatible with each other."

"Well we are good friends, so I guess it's to be expected," Stella said.

"But are you satisfied with just being friends? You can be so much more, and I guarantee it will be amazing," Lynn said.

Stella nervously chuckled, "We've been over this Lynn, Lincoln and I are just friends, nothing more."

"But is that really something you want?" Lynn asked. "You two look like you're made for each other."

"Lynn, I'm quite sure-" Stella tried explaining but was interrupted.

"I mean, yeah he's a bit wimpy, and dorky, can't exercise for the life of him, always lets people walk all over him..." Lynn began.

Stella looked displeased at this, "Um, aren't you being a little-"

"He's also a bit manipulative when he wants to be, and an occasional whiner, he even lied about being bad luck once, really not cool," Lynn continued.

"Bad luck, what do you-?" Stella still couldn't get her answer as Lynn kept talking.

"He also has weird taste in entertainment with his dorky comics, manga and a certain other book, but I won't tell you about it, yet, don't want to scare you off too soon," Lynn said.

Stella figured she might be talking about Princess Pony, "Look, Lincoln should be able to-"

"But that shouldn't stray you from him, give the poor boy a chance, he could really use a girlfriend, good for his confidence," Lynn said.

Stella looked pretty frustrated, but maintained her cool. "I'll think about it, alright?"

"That's a start, well see you around Stells," Lynn said, then turned around. "Hey can I call you 'Stells'?"

"I'd rather you-" once again, Stella could not finish her sentence.

"Well I gotta go, later Stells," Lynn walked off, leaving Stella slightly annoyed.

"I can't believe that girl! I mean, how could she...ugh" Stella then took a breath, trying to calm herself. "Gotta take it easy, that's just how she is, Lincoln accepts it, so I should too." She continued making her way home, her scowl still on her face, "Still, Lincoln must have a great degree of patience if he could put up with that."

Stella made her way home, still somewhat of a good mood, despite the negatives, she enjoyed spending time with Lincoln and a few of his sisters, she looks forward to doing that again soon.


	6. Insecurities

Later that night, everyone else had been getting ready for bed, they were all in their PJs, just relaxing in their rooms until sleep took over. Lincoln was happily exhausted, despite a few bumps in the road, he did enjoy his day with Stella.

Deep down, he did wish he and her could be an item, she's got such a tender personality, very kind to him and his family, and she's really cute too. Of course he's content with at least having her friendship, noting how his dynamic with her is a bit different than Clyde's. Only once has Clyde really asked him to open up, though perhaps it's because he never really gave him a chance to ask.

"I wonder if Clyde's more open to talking and listening?" Lincoln wondered. "If not, well at least I have Stella, maybe I can get her opinion on a few other things."

In Lucy and Lynn's room, the jock is doing her normal thing of tossing her ball against the wall while Lucy writes in her poetry book.

"This is tough," Lucy said, getting Lynn's attention.

"What is? Working on another poem?" Lynn asked.

"Yes, I'm trying to think of some good rhyming words, I would ask Lincoln, but it's about Stella and I kind of want to surprise both her and our brother," Lucy confirmed.

"You're making a poem for them?" Lynn asked. "Trying to bring them together with some rhymie words?"

"It's not romantic, it's about friendship," Lucy said. "I mean the romance part would be a nice bonus, I would love it if Lincoln and Stella did start dating."

"I can make it happen, we'll even start with your poem, spice it up with a little romance," Lynn said.

"No, like I said, this is about Friendship," Lucy said. "I want to show my appreciation for Stella, and I want it to come from me, from my personal feelings. But sometimes it's hard to bring those out, I'm too used to the Darkness."

"Maybe you just need a little more sunlight or something," Lynn said. "Anyway, if you need help, you can count on me too, why do you only go to Lincoln for this stuff?"

"He's easier to talk to, because I don't get that nagging feeling that he's silently judging me like the rest of you tend to do," Lucy said.

Hearing that statement brought a little surprise and mild offense to the jock, "Whoa, pump the brakes there Luce, did you say that we silently judge you? Where did you get a crazy idea like that?"

"I know you girls, you prey on weaknesses of others, each in their own way. Lola will judge your appearance, Lana will judge how willing you are to get dirty, Luna will judge you if you're not 'rockin' as she says, Luan judges your humor, Lisa judges your intelligence, Leni judges fashion and Lori...well what won't she judge given her oldest sibling status." Lucy turned her attention right to Lynn, "And you, Lynn, you judge based off strength and athleticism. Lincoln has yet to show any judgmental personality, which is why I trust him more."

"You really think Lincoln never judges?" Lynn asked. "Remember how we weren't good enough for his portrait and had to basically manipulate us into taking another picture?"

"That probably wouldn't have happened the lot of you didn't make his mugs to mom and dad seem worthless," Lucy said.

"Oh, so now it's our fault he can't handle a little criticism?" Lynn asked. "Lola wasn't trying to be bratty when she told him, it just slipped out."

"Lynn, it's Lola, of course she was being bratty, she has a tendency to be self-centered," Lucy said.

"So does Lincoln!" Lynn shouted. "We're all self centered in our own way Luce! Even you!"

"Yes, but how often do you show redemption for your actions?" Lucy asked.

"All the time! When have I not!?" Lynn asked.

"Is that a trick question?" Lucy asked.

"Ugh, there's just no reasoning with you, all you see is the Doom and Gloom," Lynn said, laying down. "Sometimes I wonder why we're even roommates, we're nothing alike."

"Oh, wanna switch again? Maybe the third time's the charm," Lucy pointed out. "I think we both know neither of us would fair any better with any of our other sisters, and you have proven you can't fair as Lincoln's roommate, so like it or not, we're stuck together, and I know you get depressed when I'm not there."

"Hey Lincoln said you were bouncing my ball against our wall so don't act like I came crawling back to you!" Lynn shot back. "Besides, I tried coming back, you kept kicking me out the room!"

"I did it for a reason, to teach you a lesson, one you seem to have forgotten," Lucy said.

"What lesson!?" Lynn shouted. "Ugh, you know what, I honestly don't care, do what you want, I'm going to bed."

Lynn laid down, hoping to catch some Zs while Lucy struggled to write her poem. "Hm...I could ask Luna, she's good with rhymes too, but her energy is way too high for my liking. Maybe I just need to-" Lucy stopped to think a moment. She turned once to face her jock sister, who seemed to be asleep, whether she was or not, Lucy didn't really care.

She got up and grabbed a few things before leaving the room, "I need a break." Lucy had gone down the hall, knocking on the door to Lincoln's room, getting an answer from her only brother.

"Lucy? What brings you here?" Lincoln asked.

"Um, Lincoln, I know it's short notice, but is there I chance I can sleep here tonight? I'm feeling some tension being around Lynn," Lincoln said.

"Is it another fight?" Lincoln asked.

"No, but I fear there could be, we did have a heated exchange," Lucy said. "If you can't then it's fine, I can put up with it, I just wanted a little distance for tonight."

"No it's fine, but I can't fit another bed in here, so you're gonna have to use mine," Lincoln said.

"You talk like that's foreign me, we've shared beds with our siblings before, and I'd much rather share with you than Lynn," Lucy said.

"I know that feeling," Lincoln said. "Well come in, my room is your room, for tonight," Lincoln said.

Lucy smiled softly at her brother, "You're always so dependable big brother."

"It's nothing really," Lincoln said, bashfully rubbing his head as his gothic sister entered his room.

Meanwhile in Lori's shared room, the oldest sibling was still vigorously texting on her phone, communicating with multiple people at once, mainly her boyfriend Bobby and secretly to his cousin Carlotta.

"Lori?" She heard Leni's voice say. Lori turned to face the oldest of her younger siblings.

"What is it Leni? I'm texting, you know I don't like being interrupted while I'm texting," Lori said.

"Yeah, I could tell, considering how mean you were to Stella earlier," Leni said, glaring disapprovingly at her sister.

"Mean how? I said 'bye' to her," Lori said.

"You totes just brushed her off though," Leni said. "You probably hurt her feelings doing that."

"That literally isn't my problem, maybe Lincoln should have warned her about interrupting my texts," Lori said. "She's not my friend, so why should I care?"

Leni looked so infuriated, "Lori, what's with you? Even you aren't this self-centered, I mean if it were Clyde you would have tried being nicer."

"Excuse me? I've actually said worse to Clyde, and he still looks at me with googly eyes," Lori said. "If Stella's feelings get hurt over what I said, which I didn't say anything mean mind you, then that's on her."

"Lori, maybe you haven't realized, but Linky barely brings friends over, this is the first time in a while he was able to have a friend that wasn't Clyde who actually likes being here," Leni said. "The plus side, this friend is a girl, it could turn into something romantic!"

"Gee, I thought they just wanted to be only friends," Lori said. "Lincoln can do better than her anyway."

"Wha...Are you..." Leni groaned really loudly. "I don't know what's gotten into you Lori, but until I have my big sister back, I can't be around you."

Leni grabbed her stuff and left the room in a haste, leaving Lori confused and somewhat annoyed.

"What does she mean by that? I'm right here!" Lori said, before shaking her head in annoyance. "Ugh, Leni being Leni, well at least I have the room to myself."

Leni stormed down the hall, accidentally bumping into Luna, the rocker sister having just left the bathroom. "Whoa, slow your jets Leni, there's no sale going on right now."

"Sale? Oh a sale sound so good right now," Leni said, then shook her head. "No, I can't think about clothes, I'm in a bad mood."

"I can tell, did you get into a fight with Lori?" Luna asked.

"No, but I almost did," Leni said. "She's being so mean lately, it makes me so angry!"

"Is this about Stella?" Luna asked, getting a nod from Leni. "I get ya, what Lori did was totally uncalled for."

"I hope this doesn't make Stella not wanna come back, she's such a nice girl, I'm really hoping she falls in love with Linky!" Leni said.

"Yeah, me too," Luna admitted. "I don't think this will be enough to keep her away, she's pretty chill honestly, she put up with Lynn's nonsense today, I think she can put up with Lori's cold shoulder."

"Still, Stella didn't deserve that," Leni said. "If she ends up not wanting to come back, Linky may never forgive Lori, I don't want our siblings to hate each other."

"No one's going to hate anyone, I promise you that Leni," Luna reassured. "Look, why don't you bunk with Luan and I tonight? I can get a sleeping bag, it'll be like a sleepover."

"Ooh! That sounds fun!" Leni said, back to her cheery self.

"You bet sis," Luna said, leading her older sister into the rocker-comedian shared room.

The next day at Lincoln's school during his lunch period, he had a chance to catch up with his friends Zack, Liam and Rusty. Stella was there too of course, telling them about her time at Lincoln's house over the weekend.

"It was great, Lincoln has some really cool sisters with very interesting personalities," Stella said.

"Well, you actually enjoyed yerself, good to hear," Liam said.

"You guys definitely overexaggerated, Lincoln's sisters are really nice and sweet," Stella said. "Though it could be because they thought it was a date, but even when we told them we're just friends, they were still just as nice."

"Wow, the impossible has happened," Rusty said, much to Lincoln's annoyance.

"Again, my sisters aren't that bad, they can be very dependable when I really need them," Lincoln said.

"Yeah, maybe you should give them another chance Rusty, all of you should," Stella said.

"No way, I can't handle that type of chaos," Zach said. "Those girls can be scary."

"My sisters are not scary!" Lincoln insisted. "Maybe Lucy when she pops out of nowhere, or Lori when she's mad, or Lola when she's mad, or Luan during April Fool's, but they're not scary!"

"What does Luan do on April Fool's?" Stella asked.

"Don't ask, it's a terrible memory," Lincoln said. "Just keep in mind never to come to my house on that day, no one is immune to her pranking."

"...Uh, ok," Stella said. "But seriously, they're really nice girls, I mean, a couple of them could use some...better manners let's say, but I do like them a lot. I don't want to pick favorites, but I did particularly enjoy spending time with Luna and Luan. Maybe next time I can do something with Leni, or some poetry with Lucy, or see is Lisa needs help on her experiments."

"Please do not volunteer to help Lisa on anything, she will turn you into a human lab rat," Lincoln warned.

"She's only four, what could she really do?" Stella asked.

Lincoln grabbed her by the shoulders, looking straight into her eyes, "Don't underestimate any of my sisters, they don't know the meaning of age, only what they want. Please, do not ever offer assistance like that to Lisa, and if she asks you, tell her no!"

Stella looked a bit weirded out, "What if it's something minor?"

"There's no such thing as minor when it comes to my sisters Stella, especially when it comes to Lisa!" Lincoln explained. "Just, don't, offer, your, assistance!"

"Alright, fine!" Stella said, getting a tad bit annoyed. "Your family is quite something, to tell you the truth, I'm a little jealous you have that many sisters, at least you're never lonely."

"That's why Clyde likes coming over as well, since he's an only child he doesn't have that chance to bond like I do," Lincoln explained.

"Say where is Clyde?" Stella asked. "He was here earlier today."

"He had to go help Principal Huggins with something, said it was 'Top Secret', whatever that means," Lincoln said.

"You can ask him yerself, here he comes now!" Liam said, gesturing to Clyde as he quickly approached the table.

"Sorry I'm late!" Clyde said, taking a breath. "Principal Huggins asked me to help him sort out his portfolio, it has records of every student in this school."

"Wow, that must have taken forever!" Rusty said.

"Oh we're not done, he just told me to take a break, saying he doesn't want to overwork me," Clyde said. "Honestly I enjoyed doing that, keeping things nice, tidy and in order is quite fulfilling."

"Wow, sounds fun," Rusty said in a deadpan tone.

"Indeed it was," Clyde said, not noticing the sarcasm. "So Lincoln, Stella, how was the weekend together?"

"It was great, Lincoln's sisters are so fun to be around," Stella said.

"Yeah, they are," Clyde said. "They're all great in their own way, like Luan, she's always good for a laugh."

"She was so nice, same with Luna, she showed me her music collection," Stella said.

"All of it? Or just the surface scratcher?" Clyde asked. "Luna has tons of music, even songs from before any of us were born."

"Well I wasn't in her room long, she invited me there after we got home from the park yesterday," Stella said.

"Yesterday? I thought the movie was on Saturday?" Clyde asked.

"Oh, I came over both days, after the movie the first day, Lincoln and I went to Gus's Game and Grubs where we met that boy Chandler," Stella said.

"Chandler was there? And you got to talk to him!?" Clyde asked.

"Yeah, he was really nice, he even invited me and Lincoln to a party," Stella said.

"What about us?" Rusty asked. "Did we get an invite?"

"I asked him, he said he'll give the rest of you a chance, so I suggest you try impressing him sometime soon," Lincoln said.

"So we'll have a chance to get that raw sewage experience, awesome!" Clyde cheered.

"Right..." Stella said, finding that explanation weird. "Anyway, the next day I got to go to the park with his sisters, I saw Luna's concert, Luan making balloon animals, it was so fun!"

"Until Lynn ruined it by being weird," Lincoln said.

"Right...Lynn," Stella said, still feeling a sense of annoyance from her encounter the previous day. "Still, his sisters are sweet girls, I might have to go see them again soon."

"Wanna come over after school? We can do our homework together, then see if my sisters are doing anything fun," Lincoln said.

"I'd love that," Stella said. "Maybe I can talk to Luan more about helping her with a birthday party!"

"You wanna come too Clyde?" Lincoln asked. "I'm sure my sisters wouldn't mind seeing you as well."

"While I'd love the chance to see my sweet Lori again, I don't think I'll make it," Clyde said. "I don't know how long my job with Huggins will last, not that I mind. That reminds me," Clyde turned to Stella. "What'd you think of Lori? Pretty sweet huh? She's easily the most beautiful girl in all of Royal Woods."

"If you have such a big crush on her, why were you hoping to woo me when we first met?" Stella asked.

"Well, maybe I am trying to move on since she's older than me, but it's hard to forget a first love," Clyde said.

"Um, alright," Stella said. "Well to answer your question Clyde, Lori seemed nice, but she was a bit...busy and distracted. Likely from her meeting with her boyfriend."

"I hate to say it, but not all my sisters were that friendly to Stella, Lori was one of them," Lincoln said.

"Maybe she's in a better mood today, she's not always like that is she?" Stella asked.

"No, not to that degree, I mean she used to be much meaner, but she's really lightened up," Lincoln said. "Unfortunately she just has days when she's in a bad mood. Happens to all my sisters, especially my older ones. Seems like they get that way at least once a month."

For some reason, Rusty started laughing, earning an angry glare from Stella, which prominently shut him up.

"Well, I'll see you after school Stella," Lincoln said.

"More like, you'll see me the rest of the day, and after school, I am your classmate after all," Stella pointed out.

"Heh, right, good point," Lincoln sheepishly said.

The day continued on for the kids, having a few more classes before dismissal, arguably a kid's most favorite part of the school day, aside from Clyde. Lincoln and Stella agreed to walk back to his house, Stella using Lincoln's phone to call her parents, letting them know she would be staying after.

"Yeah, I'm going to Lincoln's house again," Stella said. Suddenly she began angrily blushing, "Mom, I already told you, we're just friends...yeah, I know that...look can we talk later, he's standing right next to me...well duh, I'm using his cell phone, bye mom." Stella hung up and gave the phone back to Lincoln. "Uh, I don't suppose you caught most of that."

"Don't worry about it, you've seem my sisters do it to me," Lincoln said.

"Is it that weird for a boy and a girl to just be friends?" Stella asked. "I mean, don't any of your sisters have friends that are guys?"

"Well yeah, Leni has a friend from work who's a guy, Luna has a male bandmate that she hangs out with, Lori has guy friends from her school, Lucy has friends from her club that are guys, so it's common," Lincoln said.

"Oh, Lucy's part of a club? Is it poetry?" Stella asked.

"Um...not exactly," Lincoln said. "Let's just say that while most kids would be enjoying life, Lucy's interested in what happens after it."

"Oh, is she spiritual?" Stella asked.

"Yeah let's go with that," Lincoln said. "Anyway there's my home."

"Lana! Get your lizard away from my dress!" They heard Lola shout.

"Snakes aren't lizards! They're reptiles!" Lana shouted.

Lincoln turned to Stella, "No shame in turning back."

"Come on, I've seen them argue already, at least this argument is educational," Stella pointed out.

Lincoln opened the door, so far things don't look too chaotic yet, most of the sisters were in their rooms, some in the living room watching tv while Rita was doing a crossword puzzle in the kitchen.

"I'm home!" Lincoln announced.

"Don't care!" Lynn shouted from her room.

"And I brought Stella!" Lincoln said. Suddenly every sister aside from Lisa, Lily and Lori gathered at the front door to greet the girl.

"Stella! What a great surprise!" Lola said.

"We didn't think we'd see you again so soon," Leni said.

"Here for another date?" Lana asked.

"Not a date!" Lincoln reminded.

"Ease up dudettes, at least let Stella come inside first before you start crowding her," Luna suggested.

"Huh, I always feel so welcome when I come here," Stella said. "Even if it's a little overwhelming, you girls make quite a crowd."

"Welcome to the Jungle," Luna said, gesturing the two inside. "Just make yourself at home."

"Thanks Luna," Stella said, following Lincoln towards his room. "Lincoln and I have some homework to do, it shouldn't take too long, just some math equations."

"Well once you're done subtracting that from your schedule, come stop by my room and we'll talk funny business," Luan said.

"She's here to hang out with Lincoln, not you," Lynn said, then focused on her brother. "Don't worry, your big sister's got you covered."

"Just a second ago you didn't even care that Lincoln came home, sure changed your tune once Stella showed up," Lola said.

"Oh like you're one to talk," Lynn said.

"I beg your pardon!?" Lola shouted, looking ready to brawl.

"Let's hurry before this place gets covered in red," Lincoln said, hurrying his friend upstairs.

"I'll make time to see you Luan," Stella said. "You don't mind, right Lincoln?"

"Not at all," Lincoln hastily said, getting Stella into his room.

Fortunately before things escalated downstairs, the matriarch of the Loud Family made her presence, "What's going on?"

"Nothing mom, just keeping an eye out for our only brother," Lynn said, flashing a confident toothy smile.

"Yeah, sure you are," Lola sarcastically stated, much to Lynn's annoyance.

Rita turned to Luna, "Seriously, what's going on, why is everyone gathered down here all of a sudden? And what does this have to do with Lincoln?"

"He brought his friend Stella over and we all got excited since you know, she's a cool girl," Luna said.

"Oh he brought her over again?" Rita asked. "Wow, that's three days in a row. I'm happy that he's able to comfortably bring over another friend." Rita narrowed her eyes at her daughters, "Wait, you girls aren't attempting to matchmake them are you?"

"We're not, well most of us aren't," Luna said, gesturing her eyes toward Lynn. "Lincoln told us this girl is just a friend, and we're doing our best to respect that."

"Good, because I don't want to hear Lincoln coming to me about his sisters trying to set him up with a girl just because they hang out together," Rita said. "Honestly it's sweet you girls look out for Lincoln, as well as each other, but the last thing you wanna do is overwhelm Lincoln and make both him and Stella uncomfortable."

"We totally get that mom, we promise not to make things complicated for Lincoln," Luna said.

"Good," Rita said, making her way upstairs. "I'm gonna have a word with Lincoln, you girls stay out of trouble."

Luna turned to Lynn with a slightly stern look, "Hear that Lynn? Mom says not to bug Lincoln about Stella, so my advice is to keep your distance already."

"Mom said not to overwhelm him, so I won't," Lynn said with a smug grin.

"Lynn, enough is enough," Luan said. "You heard mom, you're not only going to end up upsetting Lincoln, you might upset Stella too."

"Look, I won't do anything crazy, you have my word," Lynn said, putting her arms up defensively.

"Well, we're holding you to that word," Luna warned.

"If you break it, you'll have all of us to answer to," Lucy added.

"Ok, ok," Lynn said, making her exit. "I got ya." She started making her way upstairs, though once at the top, she glared down at her sisters. "I'm so gonna make them eat their words."

While in Lincoln's room, he and Stella had brought out their homework, it wasn't much and it wasn't really difficult, so they should be able to breeze through it. He then heard a knock on his door accompanied by the voice of his mother, "Lincoln, honey?"

"Come in mom," Lincoln said, to which his mother had opened the door, getting full view of her son and friend.

"Hello Mrs. Loud," Stella greeted.

"Hello Stella, it's nice to see you again," Rita said. "I just came by to check on you two. I know you were overwhelmed by your sisters a moment ago."

"Yeah, it's fine, Luna helped keep things to a minimum," Lincoln said.

"Good to know," Rita said, focusing back on the house guest. "So Stella, will you be staying long today? Or is this just a quick homework session?"

"I'll stay as long as I'm welcome here, I know Luan wanted to speak with me about something," Stella said.

"Well you're always welcome in our home, if you'd like you can even stay for dinner, I think my husband was hoping you would stick around yesterday for his Lynn-sangia as he likes to call it," Rita said.

"My parents already had dinner planned last night, but maybe I can stay tonight, what is he making?" Stella asked.

"I think it's meatloaf with a side of corn and potatoes," Rita said. "I don't know if that's something you eat."

"I don't mind, my dad once picked something up from your family's restaurant, it tasted pretty great, I think it was a type of goulash meal," Stella said.

"Well that is one of my husband's favorite dishes to make," Rita said. "Well I'll leave you two be. Also Lincoln, be sure to let me know if your sisters get too...interested in your friendship with Stella."

"Will do," Lincoln said as his mother left the room.

"Your mom's really nice, both your parents are," Stella said.

"Yeah, they're great, me and my sisters are lucky to have them," Lincoln said. "It's amazing how well they handle raising eleven kids."

"Yeah, I don't think I can handle raising that many children," Stella said. "I'm a little surprised they had so many."

"My dad wanted a big family, I think his biggest worry was any of his kids being lonely, so he figured the more siblings the better," Lincoln said. "The only thing I wonder is how I ended up being the only boy."

"Yeah, right in the middle too," Stella said. "That or there's a pattern, maybe after every five girls is one boy, so if your parents decide to have another baby, it could be a boy."

"...Tempted to ask them to see if they're willing," Lincoln said. "But I'll leave that up to them."

"Do you ever wish you could have a brother?" Stella asked.

"Sometimes, I mean I have friends like Clyde and Bobby who are like brothers to me, but I kind of wish there was a brother among our sisters," Lincoln said. "I mean the closest I have to a brother among my sisters is probably Lynn, and to an extent, Lana, but they're both girls at the end, not the most feminine girls, but then again, I'm not the most masculine guy."

"Hey, about Lynn," Stella said. "Can I ask, what's your relationship with her like?"

"What's it like?" Lincoln asked, thinking about his sporty sister. "She's...a bit more of a handful than my other sisters, not by much since my sisters rarely have an off button. Growing up, she was the most relatable sister to me since she was the closest to my age. We did a lot together, from playing games, to trick-or-treating, we even used to bathe together."

"I see, it sounds like you two might be pretty close, so you two get along a lot?" Stella asked.

"Um, well..." Lincoln tried picking his words carefully. "She's just...I mean she's a nice girl when she wants to be, and I do admire her for being so tough, and I feel a bit safer around her because she's strong and I know if I ever needed her, she'll be quick to have my back. But...she can be, a bit complicated."

"Has she...I mean, does she bully you?" Stella asked.

Lincoln was about to disagree, but he actually had to think about that. He knows that despite her attitude, his sporty sister does love him, at least he believes so, and she has shown to be protective of him when he needed her. But that doesn't change the fact that she's not always the nicest to him, and out of all the sisters, she can be the most aggressive towards him. Lori may be bossy, but that's usually the worst of it and she knows when to dial it back. Lola is bratty, but even she shows a soft spot towards Lincoln more often than not, and her brattiness is likely her just wanting Lincoln's attention. Lynn, while she probably doesn't mean to, can be too much to handle, between her insults and her physical aggressiveness. While he metaphorically has thick skin to handle the insults, physically, he does not.

"Uh, Lincoln?" Stella said. "You still with me?"

"Huh?" Lincoln said, snapping out of his thoughts. "Right, sorry, your question just took me by surprise."

"Sorry if it's too personal, it's just that, you two seem to have such different personalities and I wanted to make sure that in spite of all that, you two truly cared for each other," Stella said. "I know you said you love your sisters regardless, I just hope they love you just as much. You're so lucky to have a big family, it would upset me if it was taken for granted."

"Well, I know my sisters love me, they just have weird ways of showing it," Lincoln said. "Lynn's way is being...well, being who she is. Yeah she can be mean and rude sometimes, and she has caused a lot of headaches for me, but Lynn hasn't had it easy either. She used to get bullied in school, so she had to develop a tougher personality. I think that's why she's so hard on me, she wants me to be tougher."

"Well I guess that makes sense, she wants you to be able to stand up to a bully," Stella said.

"Yes, I mean I've tried to, I've had a bully once," Lincoln said. "After a while I decided enough was enough, and I was ready to confront that bully."

"Were you gonna fight?" Stella asked.

"Oh no way, I'm not one for violence, I was gonna use my words and let them know that I wasn't going to tolerate being bullied," Lincoln said.

"Well good for you," Stella said. "Uh, how did that work if I may ask."

"Well I didn't get to, once my sisters found out someone was picking on me, they were pretty furious," Lincoln said. "They all had different ideas on what to do, Lori suggested social humiliation, Luan suggested comedic insults, Lola told me to tell the Principal...which honestly is a good idea...and Lynn of course, wanted me to fight the bully."

"Well, what happened?" Stella asked.

"When I told them I didn't want to do any of their ideas, they decided to just find the closest boy that looked like a bully and beat them up," Lincoln said. "They backed off once I told them the bully was a girl."

"A girl?" Stella asked. "Who is she? Anyone I know?"

"It was Ronnie Anne, before she was my friend, she used to be a bully," Lincoln said. "I don't know why she bullied me but she was being really annoying."

"Wait, what did your sisters say?" Stella asked. "Did they back off because she was the sister of Lori's boyfriend?"

"I don't think any of them knew at the time, I didn't even know," Lincoln said. "Point is once they found out it was a girl, their thought was that she only bullied me because she had a crush on me, so they told me to kiss her."

"...Did you actually kiss her?" Stella asked.

Lincoln sighed in shame, "Yeah, I did, then she punched me in the eye."

"No offense, but kissing her was kind of a dumb idea, if she was being mean to you, she's not gonna want you to kiss her," Stella said. "No offense to your sisters, but just because a girl bullies a guy doesn't mean she likes the guy, at least I don't think so. For all we know, she really just didn't like you for some odd reason, next time just do what you planned to do. Seems like bullies aren't the only thing you need to stand up to, you might need to learn how to stand up to your sisters."

"It's ten, on one!" Lincoln clarified, using his fingers for emphasis. "Remember, Hive Mind!"

"Lincoln there's no such thing as 'Hive Mind'," Stella insisted. "I share opinions with you and the guys, but that doesn't make us 'Hive Minded'."

"Point is that standing up to my sisters is probably the single worst thing I can do, several of them can beat me up alone, especially Lynn, Luna, Lori and Lola!" Lincoln said.

"Wait Lola? She's six," Stella pointed out.

"She's also freakishly strong, I'm convinced she has super human strength," Lincoln said.

Stella just looked aside in disbelief, almost unable to believe what she just heard, "Right...sure she is."

Lincoln face palmed in frustration, "Look, point is that I can't just stand up to my sisters, I don't want to get on their bad side."

"Your sisters love you Lincoln, you said you believed that, didn't you?" Stella asked.

Lincoln reluctantly nodded, "Well, yeah, but-"

"So they just might be understanding of your frustrations, maybe they'll be mad at first but I don't think they'll beat you up, and even if they get rough with you, it's not like they'll intentionally cause permanent harm to you, I just can't see many of them doing that," Stella said.

"But the ones that can are the ones that worry me the most," Lincoln said.

Stella felt a surge of worry and empathy, it's like Lincoln truly was afraid of aggravating his sisters. "Anyway tell me, what happened after that situation with Ronnie Anne?"

"Well, she did eventually apologize for punching me, I think she was actually flattered that I kissed her, so I don't know if my sisters were really right about her liking me, but considering we're just friends, I'm guessing that she did hate me, but became curious after I kissed her, then decided I wasn't her type but I was still fun to hang around," Lincoln said. " I mean she still messed with me, like stuffing sloppy joes down my pants, but it wasn't as bad as before."

"She's quite the girl your friend Ronnie Anne is," Stella said. "So you told me you two thought about dating but decided against it?"

"Yeah, we stuck to just being friends. Of course that didn't stop other students from teasing us about being together, at least early on in our 'friendship', if you could call it that, she still bullied me. I remember one time I got so angry I insulted Ronnie Anne pretty badly, I mean I didn't intend to do it to her face, but she did overhear me," Lincoln said. "It hurt her feelings and she cried to her brother about it, then he broke up with Lori. Man she was mad, she looked like she wanted to wreck me."

"Wait, didn't Lori know that Ronnie Anne was bullying you at the time?" Stella asked. "Shouldn't she have asked her boyfriend to tell his sister to stop picking on you?"

"Hey if I knew Ronnie Anne was Bobby's sister I would have told Lori back then, but somehow I doubt she would have cared, she would have expected me to play nice with her," Lincoln said. "Maybe I could have told Bobby, but I feel like that could have been bad too, like if Ronnie Anne sabotaged their date out of spite or Lori getting mad that I got her in trouble."

"Do you really believe that's what could have happened?" Stella asked.

"You've seen how cold Lori can be Stella, I'm confident that's how it would play out," Lincoln said. "Sometimes Lori's more concerned with Bobby than she is about us, I'm not the only one who thinks that too, just ask any of my sisters. They support their relationship, I do too, but not to the extent that she places Bobby higher than us."

Stella again was amazed by how this family functioned, but she shouldn't be too surprised about certain things. Lori, like many teenagers, is likely to place friendships, social reputations and other things before families, even if they loved them a lot. Lynn, being a jock like many others, would be the type to be aggressive.

"Funny, lately I've started feeling like I'm your therapist or something," Stella said. "Your family has so many interesting dynamics, but maybe I will try asking your sisters their perspectives. I apologize if that makes me look nosy but I am genuinely curious."

"Hey, ask away, I won't stop you...unless I thought they might beat you up or something," Lincoln said.

"Wow, so chivalrous," Stella said, somewhat sarcastically. "I think I'll be fine. Also, about Lynn." This got Lincoln's attention. "I get that maybe things haven't been easy for her, but that doesn't excuse any bad behavior she might show towards you."

"I know," Lincoln said. "But like I said, she's difficult to deal with."

"If you ever need help then let me know, if I'm being honest, she could use a little work," Stella said.

"Hey, she hasn't been mean to you while I wasn't around, has she?" Lincoln asked.

"No...but I did catch her in an...unfavorable moment," Stella said. "It's nothing, try not to worry about it, but I do hope straighten things out. Plus I have a few things to tell her myself."

Lincoln wasn't sure, but he sensed a little animosity in her voice. He really hopes Lynn hasn't upset Stella in anyway, she can say what she wants to him but he's not gonna let his friend get pushed around. "Alright Stella."

"Well, anyway let's get to that homework of ours," Stella said, the two working on their math.

Meanwhile in Great Lakes, Sid Chang, the best friend of Ronnie Anne, had made her way to the Casagrande Apartment, knocking on the door.

Carlotta answered, smiling down at the girl, "Hey Sid, here to see Ronnie Anne?"

"Yeah, finished my homework early, so I figured I could come by, maybe play some games and stuff," Sid said.

"She should be finishing up soon herself, come on in girl," Carlotta said.

"Thanks," Sid said, stepping inside.

"Little surprised you came through the front, I figured you could just use the fire escape," Carlotta said.

"I was gonna, but I saw a flock of pigeons, got some really bad memories all of a sudden," Sid said, shuddering at the time she practiced her bird calls.

"Right...hey question, when Ronnie Anne went to see you yesterday, did she look...off?" Carlotta asked.

"Off? Like how?" Sid asked.

"Like if something was bothering her and she didn't want to say anything?" Carlotta asked.

"Um...now that you mention it, she did seem like she had some stuff on her mind, and she just felt...off," Sid said, then began to look worried. "Oh don't tell me, she found a new best friend!?"

Carlotta didn't expect that response, "Uh, no, she-"

"Oh man, has she moved on!?" Sid asked. "Was it something I did, or maybe said!?"

"Sid, chill," Carlotta tried to calm Sid down, but it fell on deaf ears.

"I swear I can change, I gotta let her know that I can be the friend she needs!" Sid said.

"Sid!" Carlotta shouted, still getting no response.

"We went through a lot to be together, I can't let it end like this!" Sid panicked, until Carlotta grabbed her by the shirt.

"Sid! Chill out!" Carlotta demanded. "Ronnie Anne isn't moving on, you're still her best friend!"

"I am?" Sid asked, almost in disbelief, then played it cool. "Of course I am, I'm too lovable to give up."

"Uh-huh..." Carlotta said. "You know I like you Sid, but you need to learn how to dial it back once in a while."

"Right, sorry, anyway if it's not that, when what's bugging Ronnie Anne?" Sid asked.

"I think it has to do with a boy she knew back in Royal Woods," Carlotta answered.

"A boy?" Sid asked. "Wait, is this like an old boyfriend or something?"

"Yeah, they used to spend a lot of time together in Royal Woods, until she moved out here, and they slowly began to drift apart," Carlotta said. "Now he has his eyes on another girl, and it's breaking Ronnie's heart."

"Her heart's breaking!?" Sid said in disbelief. "Well I can't let that happen! You tell me what I can do for her, and I'll give it my Honest-to-God best in helping my best friend!"

"Don't worry, I hear Bobby's been getting a lot of texts from his girlfriend, who happens to be that boy's older sister," Carlotta said. "I think they're working on a reunion as we speak."

"Cool...wait this boy, is his name, Lincoln Loud?" Sid asked.

"Yeah, why has she mentioned him!?" Carlotta asked.

"Yeah, he was brought up in a conversation she once had with her other friends Nikki, Casey and Sameer," Sid said. "Ronnie Anne did seem to speak fondly of him, so all I need to do is continue adding some fuel to that fire of love, and make sure it stays burning."

"Meanwhile myself along with Bobby and Lori will make sure that little Linky remembers who truly loves him the most," Carlotta said.

"Then we're agreed, Operation Love...," Sid said, holding her hand out.

"Is a go!" Carlotta finished, the two doing their handshake pact.

Later in Royal Woods, Stella as promised, had made time to see Luan. So while Lincoln went to help Lola prepare for an upcoming pageant, Stella had gone to Luna and Luan's shared room the comedian looking through her Calendar for upcoming parties. Luna had been out practicing in the garage, leaving the two girls alone for the moment.

"I have a party later this week, it's for a friend of Lisa's," Luan said. "Or maybe not friend, just a classmate, but since Lisa's best friend Darcy was invited, Lisa got an invite of her own."

"So you want me to be an assistant clown or something?" Stella asked.

"Sort of, I'll work out the details, but I want to put on a good act for them," Luan said. "If you can bring your funny, then we can make this a special show for them."

"I'd be honored to help," Stella said.

"Good, now I have to ask, are you ok with taking a pie to the face?" Luan asked.

"Uh, would it hurt?" Stella asked.

"No, not the way I would do it," Luan said. "Don't worry, I would never come up with an idea that might hurt you."

"Good to know, not that I had doubts, I mean if you've been doing this for a while that makes you quite the professional," Stella said.

"Glad you trust me," Luan said. "Lincoln's gonna be there too, so you'll have him to help guide you too."

"Has Lincoln always helped you?" Stella asked.

"No, at first it was just me, I tried getting my other sisters to help, but they kind of made things worse," Luan said. "I almost had that problem with Lincoln, the moment he got a laugh, he let it get to his head, not that I can blame him, getting a laugh is one of the warmest feelings you can have."

"Well Lincoln is a pretty funny guy, he got a laugh out of me when he first introduced himself," Stella said.

"He's got the talent, and thankfully over time he deflated his ego, mainly since he nearly bombed at party, not everyone finds falling on your butt hilarious," Luan said. "Luckily I was there to help him, honestly I should have tried helping him sooner, but I did get a little jealous that he kept getting so many laughs."

"Aw, you have nothing to be jealous of Luan, you're plenty funny on your own," Stella said.

"I know," Luan said. "And I should have handled it better, not just as a boss, but as an older sister. Lincoln probably just wanted to be like me, it's easy to forget but we older sisters are pretty impressionable, and while Lincoln's smart and mature for his age, he's still a kid, and I gotta properly guide him."

"What is your relationship with him like, if you don't mind me asking," Stella said.

"He's great, I love spending time with him, and he always tries to make time to help me or any of our sisters, he may be my only brother, but he's also my favorite," Luan said.

"That's sweet, Lincoln seems to care a lot about all of you," Stella said. "He always has nice things to say, especially when others-" Stella then stopped herself, realizing that this wasn't a good thing to just say out loud.

"When others what?" Luan asked.

"Dang it..." Stella muttered to herself. "Um, nothing, don't worry about it."

"Alright, it's fine," Luan said. "I have an idea what you were gonna say anyway. I know that aside from Clyde, Lincoln's friends don't really like coming over much, it's not just them, my friends get worried about coming over, Luna is sometimes afraid to bring her band over, because our house gets really chaotic."

"I just don't see how people can't look past that, you all love each other very much, you get along just fine," Stella said.

"We do love each other, and we can get along, it's the times we don't get along that probably worries people," Luan said. "Remember that 'Friend Card' incident we mentioned yesterday? Yeah that's when a lot of our friends realized how nuts we all are."

"What exactly happened?" Stella asked.

"Lincoln found out he can get extra favors if he had a friend over, so he constantly brought Clyde over so he can have first dibs on the tv, get all the snacks, play all the games and even pick dinner, so we all tried bringing friends over to counter that, then Lincoln invited more of his friends, then we started doing that, then it became one big competition between us and it led to a huge fight in the house that got the attention of the cops," Luan explained.

"That's...that's pretty insane," Stella said. "Man, good thing I wasn't living here at the time, I don't think I would have wanted to be part of that...actually I still don't think I would have let myself be part of that. I mean did your friends know why they were coming over?"

"Yeah, I told Giggles when I invited her over, though she sure wasn't giggling by the end of the night," Luan chuckled a bit. "But seriously, I think she still has nightmares from that night."

"I mean, it's chaotic, but I guess hilarious in hindsight at least," Stella said. "How something so small became a tidal wave of anarky."

"Huh, guess you're right," Luan said. "Looking at things in hindsight, a lot of our misadventures were pretty humorous."

"Still, maybe next time try not to involve your friends, my guess is that most of these things can be handled by talking over your feelings," Stella said. "Sorry if that sounds cheesy but it's the best advice I can give you."

"That might be easier said than done," Luan said. "Once you've hung around us long enough, you start to understand our flaws."

"Yes, but I think I can also look past them, just like Clyde," Stella said. "And I'm sure Lori's boyfriend Bobby also looks past them too."

"I don't doubt that," Luan said. "He's a really nice guy, I mean I don't get to hang out with him much, mainly since Lori doesn't really trust me, Luna or Leni with him, but he did once come all the way down from Great Lakes to see a play I was in."

"Aw, I like this guy...I do question why he broke up with Lori when...dang it, gotta keep my mouth shut," Stella said.

"It's fine, we all know about that," Luan said. "Lincoln had to go on a double date to help Lori and Bobby get back together. Thinking about it, Lori should have handled that better, but I probably would have done the same thing honestly if it were me and Benny."

"Benny? Who's that?" Stella asked.

"My boyfriend, guessing Lincoln never told you about him," Luan said.

"Oh...didn't know you had a boyfriend," Stella said. "Well I'm sure he's really nice, hope I can see him sometime."

"I'll introduce you someday," Luan said.

"So you and Lori are dating someone, do any of your other sisters have a boyfriend?" Stella asked.

"No, I mean Luna has a girlfriend named Sam, but none of my other sisters are dating anyone," Luan said. "I mean, I think Leni's working on getting a guy but I don't know if they're dating or just flirting."

"Wow, so that's three of you, well I can say that Benny and Sam are two lucky individuals to have such kind and pretty girlfriends," Stella said.

Luan blushed at that, "Come on, if you become anymore sweet, I'll be on a sugar rush for days."

"Well it's true, I think you're both great, and Lincoln does too, I wish I could have sisters like all of you," Stella said.

"...What took Lincoln so long to properly introduce you to us?" Luan said. "Thanks, really, you're great. I...I really do wish you liked my brother that way. He needs a girl like you, honestly, when Ronnie Anne moved, many of my sisters were upset, because they believed she and Lincoln were perfect, but seeing you made me realize...Lincoln's way too good for her, she wouldn't understand him like you seem to. Looking back, I don't even like how mean she was to him, even if I thought it was because she had a crush, Lincoln was miserable because of that, and all we hoped was that he was gonna get a girlfriend. We honestly believe he's the perfect guy!" Luan looked around to make sure no one was listen. "I'm almost sure some of my sisters hate being related to him because they would have dated him in a heartbeat!"

"That's cute...little weird but cute," Stella said.

"But seriously, she wasn't the girl for him, he needed better," Luan admitted. "Leni brought up a great point the other day, I don't want us to set a bad example for Lincoln, thinking that it's ok for a girl to be mean to you as long as she says she loves you. Ronnie Anne's not a bad girl, but she's not the type of girl Lincoln needs, I honestly believe you are Stella." Luan sighed in sadness. "But I know that's your choice, I won't ever force it on either of you, but I just hope that, maybe one day, you can consider it? Be the girl my brother deserves."

Stella certainly appreciates that Luan was much nicer than Lynn about this, and she at least understands where Luan was coming from. The girls want Lincoln to be happy, and it seems like Luan just wants the right girl for her brother. Stella admires Luan and it did compliment her greatly that Luan whole heartedly believed that she's perfect for her Lincoln, Luan's little and only brother.

"Lincoln's a nice boy, and honestly...I think he's really cute and he would make a great boyfriend," Stella said, sighing sadly. "I just don't think I can pull off being a girlfriend. I don't know if I'm ready for that commitment. I'm still trying to figure out who I am, and honestly, what if I end up not being good enough for Lincoln." Stella shut her eyes, still having her own doubts. "What if I end up not being even pretty enough for Lincoln."

"Huh? Stella, you're very pretty, you have adorably eyes, great hair and really cute freckles," Luan told the distraught girl. "What guy wouldn't want to date you." Luan gently stroked her hair, "Or girl...not that I'm one of them but, I could have been."

Stella smiled at the older girl, leaning in for a hug, "Thanks, you maybe a Joker most of the time, but right now, you're a Queen of Hearts."

"Heh, good one," Luan said, returning the hug.

Just outside, Lori had overheard part of the conversation, a smug look in her eyes, "So...little miss perfect has insecurities does she?" She continued walking off, texting away on her phone. "That's interesting to know."


	7. Secrets Shared

[i]The day passed some more, as promised, Stella did stick around for dinner. Lynn Sr was quite eager to have someone new to cook for, and since she's not one of his kids, she might give a more honest opinion. Of course she could still tell a white lie, but he'll worry about that when it comes to it.

"Alright, here's the food!" Lynn Sr said, placing down the meatloaf first, then the vegetables afterwards. "Stella, since you're the guest of honor tonight, I want to personally serve you your helping."

"Oh that's not necessary Mr. Loud, I don't want to trouble you," Stella said.

"Now, now, I insist," Lynn Sr said. "I do it all the time for my daughter's other friends."

"Since when?" Lola asked.

"Well, if you do insist sir," Stella said, holing her plate out.

"You'll love this, it's restaurant quality," Lynn Sr said. "Alright, everyone else dig in, try not to take too much."

"No promises," Lynn said, going for her own helping.

"Seriously, don't hog all the food Lynn!" Lincoln sternly said, trying to get his own helping.

"Hey I want some!" Lana said, trying to grab her share.

"Yeah, I want my stomach to meat this dinner too!" Luan said, chuckling afterwards as she went for her share.

"Come on girls, behave in front of our guest," Lynn Sr pleaded.

"It's fine Mr. Loud, I like it better when people are themselves," Stella insisted.

"Wow, you're a very well mannered girl, your parents did a great job in raising you," Rita said.

"Aw, thanks Mrs. Loud, guess it takes one good parent to know another," Stella said. "I mean, raising eleven kids, that takes a lot of skill, I don't know too many people with that kind of patience, some parents likely can't even handle one child."

"Yeah, it's true," Lynn Sr lightly boasted. "Not many parents have the skills we possess, it takes years of patience and practice to get it down."

"It also takes a lot of love and understanding," Rita said. "Do you have any brothers or sisters?"

"No, I'm an only child," Stella said. "I kind of envy Lincoln for having so many sisters."

"Want Lola?" Lana joked.

"Wow, great choice Lana," Lola said, sarcastically playing along. "After all, if Stella had to pick one of us to be her sister, I'd obviously be the best choice, not like you have anything to offer."

"Hey I could totally make a great sister to Stella!" Lana shouted.

"Girls, no fighting at the dinner table!" Rita scolded.

"I couldn't take any of Lincoln's sisters away, it would break his heart," Stella said.

"Well yeah, Linky would be devastated if I weren't around," Lola said. "Nothing personal Stella, but I can't leave my favorite brother without his most adorable sister."

"That's fine, if Lincoln were my brother, I wouldn't want to give him up either," Stella said.

"Good thing he's not your brother, eh Stella?" Lynn said, shifting her eyebrows up and down.

"Lynn..." Luna lightly warned.

"Easy now, I'm just pointing out that Stella never needs to worry about Lola's burden, that's all," Lynn insisted

Luna could see through Lynn's snarky attitude, but for the sake of her brother and her friend, decided to drop it for the moment. "Fine, whatever then."

Stella could see through Lynn's statement, but she wasn't gonna bring it up, but she had a feeling that this wouldn't be the last snyde comment she would hear from the jock.

"So Stella, what do you think?" Lynn Sr asked. "Be totally honest, I can take any criticism."

"There's nothing to criticize, this tastes really great Mr. Loud," Stella said. "You truly are a great cook sir!"

"Really? Wow thanks, that means a lot Stella," Lynn Sr said.

"If this is what your kids eat everyday, then I really envy this family," Stella said. "Good thing you have your own restaurant, now everyone can enjoy your food."

"That's always been the main goal," Lynn Sr said. "I love cooking so much I wanted to make a career out of it. Plus it sets a good example for my kids, that you can make any dream a reality."

"I do admire that each one of your kids has something they're so skilled at, music, sports, comedy, pageants..." Stella said. "Did they get any of those traits from you sir?"

"Well Luna did acquire my musical taste," Lynn Sr said, then put on a British accent, "As well as fine taste for British culture."

"Got that right, guv," Luna said, putting on her own accent.

"And Luan may have heard a few of my witty puns as a child, of course she's far surpassed me in that aspect," Lynn Sr said.

"You'll always be my pun-spiration dad," Luan said, chuckling a bit, as did Stella.

"Lincoln here, my little man with a plan, learned a thing or two from his old man on how to get things done," Lynn Sr said.

"Me and dad always think outside the box," Lincoln said.

"And while I've never really been one for playing sports, watching them a lot helped influence Junior to take up every sport she could, now that's really ambitious," Lynn Sr said.

"I always go hard, and I never give up on anything," Lynn Jr said, then turned to Stella. "Anything at all..."

Stella had a feeling those words had extra meaning, though smiled it off, a bit forcefully however. "That's cute...but you don't do all the sports right? Your oldest sister Lori plays golf, doesn't she?"

"Yeah, but that's not really an intense sport, too much waiting," Lynn said, much to Lori's annoyance.

"Um, it is too a sport, just because I'm don't constantly risk breaking every bone in my body doesn't make it any less of a sport," Lori said.

"Not saying it isn't a sport, it's just well, easy to pick up, but it drags on for so long," Lynn said.

"Excuse me? You know what drags on? Your baseball games!" Lori said. "Every game it's the same thing! Swung, hit, run, it gets so repetitive!"

"That's what you do with golfing, swing, hit...walk! You walk, no real energy!" Lynn said. "Baseball has the added drama of trying to make the base, or home plate!"

"Girls, getting a bit tense here!" Lynn Sr nervously said.

"Fine, I'll admit there is drama, like you getting so superstitious out there that you do those stupid ritual dances!" Lori said.

"Hey! Don't disrespect the Baseball Gods!" Lynn warned.

"Baseball Gods?" Stella said in confusion.

"Lynn really believes in good luck, so she does what she can to 'appease' these Baseball Gods of her," Lincoln said.

"Hey it works, except that one time," Lynn said. "Still trying to figure out what the bad luck was, too bad I don't remember too much from that day."

"Bad luck?" Stella asked. She did remember hearing Lynn mention that Lincoln pretended to be bad luck once. Something told her that this was something she needed to be weary of. "Lynn, it's possible that the other team was just better that day, it has nothing to do with luck, just skill."

"If it was skill then I'd always win, the only way I would lose is if I were unlucky," Lynn said. "Or if anyone I brought along was unlucky."

Stella glanced briefly towards Lincoln, putting the pieces together even more. "That seems a bit silly Lynn, no one is bad luck after all. If you truly believe in luck, maybe the other team just had good luck, I mean it can't be anything you or anyone else did, whether it's your parents, any of your sisters...or your little brother."

Lincoln could suddenly feel some tension, the way Stella talked is as if she knew something, how she would know is anyone's guess. He never told her about that incident, he never liked telling people because of how insane it sounded, plus he partially blames himself for that so he'd rather not dig up old mistakes.

"Well I know now that it's not Lincoln," Lynn said, getting a gasp from her family.

Lynn Sr needed to derail this before his daughter admitted anything embarrassing, or regretful, or in this situation, both. "So, um Stella, what do you-"

"Why would you think it was Lincoln?" Stella asked. "Why not any of your other sisters? I mean I'd like to think none of them are unlucky."

"And we're not," Lana said, hoping to derail this as well. "Lynn was just being a sore loser that day, so she blamed Lincoln for her problems, like all the sisters do."

"Hey! That's not true!" Lola shouted, getting a groan of annoyance from many of the other siblings. Now there was gonna be two problems. "If anything I blame you more for my troubles than I do to Linky, at least he tries to take responsibility, unlike you!"

"I'm sure Lana's taken responsibility," Lincoln nervously said. "I mean, if she breaks something, she's quite good at fixing it."

"Thank you big brother," Lana said, then glared at Lola. "At least someone appreciates what I do!"

"Like you've ever shown appreciation to me for throwing those lovely tea parties!" Lola shouted.

"You know I hate tea parties! What kind of stupid rule is it to extend your pinkie when drinking out of a stinkin' cup!?" Lana shouted.

"Girls, stop fighting!" Rita scolded.

"She started it!" both twins said, pointing at each other, snarling as well.

"And for the record, I don't blame Lincoln for my problems," Lynn Jr said. "Not a lot anyway."

"Please, you basically belittle and ridicule him on a daily basis," Lucy added.

Lynn Sr turned his attention to Stella, "I promise things aren't normally like this."

"Unless it's a Sister Fight Protocol," Leni absent-mindedly stated, getting a glare from the rest of her family. "Uh, what? It's true."

"What's a 'Sister Fight Protocol'?" Stella asked, unaware of the can of worms she was about to unleash.

Lincoln's eyes dilated, this is one of the topics he would have liked to avoid. "Just, something my sisters do when they get into an argument, it helps them blow off steam, cool off, get what they need to off their chest and make up, at their own pace too."

"Oh...that's so clever!" Stella complimented. "Really creative way to end a conflict!"

Lincoln sighed with relief, as did the entire family, "Yeah, Lisa came up with it, when two sisters fight, the rest of them take it upon themselves to make sure the peace is kept."

"I even made a chart," Lisa said, pulling out her protocol chart. "Good for telling the scale of the problem."

"Why do you even have that on you?" Lana asked.

Stella turned to Lynn Sr, "Must be great knowing you have kids who can do so much and resolve things on their own."

"Hehe, yeah," Lynn Sr nervously said. "The missus and I believe that kids need to work conflicts out for themselves, this way they understand each other more and grow closer. It shows that no matter what problems they encounter in life, they will always have the skills to overcome those problems."

"You're really wise Mr. Loud," Stella complimented, getting a blush from the patriarch.

"Come on, it's nothing," Lynn Sr said, casually brushing his shirt.

Stella turned her attention to Lincoln, "You know your sisters really well, I'm sure you must have a big role to play in this Sister Fight Protocol."

"Uh...yeah?" Lincoln nervously said. "Sure, let's just say that."

Luna leaned in to whisper to the other sisters, "Someone change the subject before she gets too curious."

"I got it," Leni said, then spoke out loud. "Hey, does anyone remember the time when Lincoln tried taking the Sweet Spot in Vanzilla all for himself?"

"...What's wrong with you!?" Luna shouted, getting similar reactions from the other sisters, aside from Lori, who couldn't help but smirk at the chaos so far.

"What? You said change the subject before Stella gets too curious about what Linky does in the Sister Fight Protocol," Leni said. "Besides I thought he didn't do anything, didn't we leave him out because he would have just made things worse or something?"

Stella looked on in surprise, not sure if she really heard Leni correctly. She scanned the table to see the looks of shame and embarrassment on everyone's faces.

"Um...what just happened?" Stella asked.

"Oh my, would you look at the time, it's quite late, you should get home, you have school tomorrow," Lynn Sr hastily said. "We'd love for you to stay longer but I'm sure your parents want you home."

"Uh...yeah, I guess that's a good point," Stella said.

"I can drive her home if you'd like dad," Lori said, to the surprise of a few sisters. "Just to make it easier on you, I mean you did cook a nice meal, why do all the work?"

"Oh, why thank you Lori, that's really sweet of you," Lynn Sr said. "Yeah, I do need to clean up afterwards."

Lori turned her attention to Lincoln, "Since Stella is your guest, would you like to come with us? I'm sure you'd like to see her home yourself."

Lincoln felt odd, he knew the car ride might be awkward after what Stella just heard, but he also knew it'd be more awkward for Stella if she were alone wit Lori. "Sure, I'll be happy to join you."

"Good, let's go," Lori said, leading the two kids to the car. "Lana, you can have my leftovers."

"Aw sweet!" Lana said, grabbing the plate and chowing down what Lori hadn't finished.

Once they had left, some tension had died down, but Rita certainly wasn't happy with what had transpired. "We're gonna need a nice talk soon girls."

"Aw, thanks a lot Leni," Lola said.

"You're welcome!" Leni replied, unaware of Lola's sarcasm, not that the young pageant queen was surprised.

Luna shook her head in shame, hoping that what happened tonight could be fixed. Though as she lamented in her thoughts, she heard Luan call to her.

"Hey, Luna," the rocker girl turned to her nearest younger sister. "Think we have anything to worry about?"

"Honestly, I can't say for sure," Luna admitted. "We kind of goofed tonight after all. Hopefully Lincoln explains this stuff to her."

"Yeah, I'm sure he'll think of something," Luan said. "Still, I'm worried, what if she starts to not like us?"

"I don't think Lincoln would let that happen, little dude's been trying to cover for us already, he knows Stella's become our friend too, and he always comes through when we need him."

"I hope so," Luan said. "I can't believe this happened, everything was going so well!"

"Uh, have you met us Luan? Of course things were gonna go down," Luna said. "Gotta admit though, didn't expect it to be that bad, I just thought the twins were gonna argue, or Lynn was gonna be her usual jock self."

"Yeah, she did worry me the most," Luan said, eyeing Lynn, or at least where she thought the jock was. "Where'd Lynn go?"

Luna looked to her now empty chair, "Probably bailed or something, mom ain't too happy."

"But her plate still has some meat on it," Luan said, gesturing to the uneaten piece of meat.

"Whoa, hold up, Lynn never leaves a meal unfinished, especially when it's meat!" Luna said.

"You don't think she..." Luan was saying, then the two sisters rushed to the living room window to see their fears confirmed. Lynn was sneaking into the back of Vanzilla, just as Lori was letting Lincoln and Stella in.

"Oh crap," Luna muttered. The two rushed to go outside but Lori had already begun backing out into the street.

"Lori wait!" Luan shouted. Her plea fell on deaf ears, Lori had not noticed either girl and simply backed into the street and began driving home. "Ugh, this can't be good, what do you suppose Lynn's up to?"

"She's probably still trying to play matchmaker," Luna said. "That girl never knows when to quit."

"Well she is an athlete, of course she's not used to quitting, it's a blessing and a curse," Luan said.

"Story of our lives," Luna said. "Well they'll notice soon, and it won't be pretty, but Lynn brought it on herself."

The ride in Vanzilla felt really awkward for Lincoln. The dinner really took a turn for the worse, between Lynn's attitude, the twins fighting and Leni bringing up some unpleasant moments from their past.

"So...which is the Sweet Spot?" Stella asked.

"Right behind our seat," Lincoln explained. "It's the perfect seat since you're not stuck in the back where fights happen, not in the front where my parents can keep too close of an eye on us, or listen to their weird choice of music, and it's not soggy, sticky or springy."

"Huh, interesting," Stella said. "So, do you use it often?"

"I was, then my sisters found out about it," Lincoln said. "So now I have to share it."

"Next time don't be so sneaky," Lori scolded.

"I'm sneaky? I'm still mad you girls went into my room without permission, then you're the first to throw us out when we go into your room," Lincoln reminded.

"We had to, you were acting suspicious," Lori said.

"Well I-" Lincoln stopped himself. "Forget it, I don't want to get into a fight in front of Stella."

"What's the big deal, if she's gonna be around us, she needs to get used to it," Lori said. "Clyde's used to it, all my friends are used to it, so Stella can get used to it. But, if it's too much for you Stella, we perfectly understand if you don't want to come over any longer."

"Well, tonight was a bit awkward, but the more I spend time in your house, the more I think I understand you girls," Stella said. "Plus it's just arguing, it's not like you really start anything physical."

"Just wait til you see Lynn when she's mad then," Lori said. "Also, try coming over during April Fool's, Luan may like you but even you won't be immune to her pranks."

"Nothing wrong with a few harmless pranks," Stella said, getting an uneasy laugh from Lincoln and a sly smile from Lori.

"Fine, whatever you want, Stella," Lori said.

"But seriously, this actually makes me feel at ease too, I don't want any of you to feel like you have to act differently around me, and it just seems like you're just getting comfortable with me around," Stella said. "Bit of an odd sort of way, but it's the Loud way."

"Keeper," Lynn said from the backseat, almost loud enough to alert them.

"Anyone hear that?" Lincoln asked, looking around.

"Hear what?" Stella asked.

Lincoln peeped above the seats, "I thought I heard Lynn. Maybe I'm imaging it?"

"Lincoln, sit down while I'm driving," Lori scolded, to which Lincoln obeyed, though still kept his eye out.

"I swear if Lynn's creeping around here, I'm gonna be ticked off," Lincoln said. "Doesn't help that she's always lurking around, ready to ambush me in an attempt to make me play some weird sport, or even spar with her for her karate, kickboxing or lucha libre stuff."

"Have you ever told Lynn you don't like doing that?" Stella asked.

"Lynn doesn't really care about my opinion, and since I'm the only boy, I'm the best target for this stuff," Lincoln said, getting a frown from Lynn.

"Wuss," the jock quietly said. "Learn to toughen up, it's for your own good."

"It has nothing to do with your gender Lincoln," Lori said. "You want Lynn to stop, grow a spine and get assertive. You think she hasn't tried that with us? She once tried her martial arts on Luna, I remember it nearly broke her guitar."

Stella gasped, "Did Lynn's fighting almost break it?"

"No, Luna knocked her on her butt and nearly whacked her over the head with her guitar," Lori said. "Lynn never messed with her again. Luna's laid back but when she's mad, she can get tough."

"Oh my..." Stella said.

"Well I'm not inherently violent, I don't want to hurt my sister if I don't need to," Lincoln said.

"I can take it," Lynn whispered. "Such a softie."

"You don't need to be violent, just be assertive, stand your ground," Stella said. "You said it yourself, you believe Lynn loves you a lot, I think she'll be more understanding than you think."

"Ew, don't say mushy stuff about me Stinkin," Lynn muttered.

"I'll think about it," Lincoln said.

Lori looked out the window, "Which house is yours Stella?"

"The one of the left," Stella said. Lori stopped and dropped the girl off, "Thanks Lori."

"Uh huh," Lori said, barely acknowledging the girl.

Stella looked a little disappointed, wondering if it's something she's doing that's causing Lori's demeanor towards her. "Well, I'll see you soon."

"Want me to walk you to your door?" Lincoln asked.

"Um...I think I'll be good," Stella said. "I don't want you to keep your sister waiting."

"Might as well, I'm already out, besides I get the feeling my brother has more he wants to tell you, I can see it in his eyes," Lori said.

Lincoln nodded, "Yeah, something like that."

"Oh, well alright," Stella said.

Before Lincoln stepped out the car, he heard his sister call his attention. "Lincoln, if I were you, I'd be totally honest with Stella, be honest about everything. Who knows, maybe she'll be more understanding.

Lincoln somewhat understood what Lori was saying, though this did confuse him. Why is Lori encouraging this when she treats Stella like such a burden. "Alright."

Lincoln stepped out of the car to walk Stella, just as Lori turned back to her phone. "Or maybe she'll find us so terrible to be around, she won't want to be around anymore. But I'm sure we'll be fine regardless."

Lynn had overheard Lori's little monologue, getting very irritated. "You're such a jerk Lori, I'm not letting you mess this up." She quietly exited Vanzilla as Lori texted some extra details to Carlotta.

As Lincoln walked Stella to the porch, the girl could see he wanted to say something, but was too hesitant to speak. "Lincoln, you know if you have something you wanna tell me, I'll be perfectly understanding."

"I know, you're great like that," Lincoln said. "It's just, I don't want to overwhelm you, because my family has tons of weirdness that would normally drive people away. My sisters barely tell even their best friends, the only non-family members that know about half this stuff are Clyde and Bobby, and even some things they never really got a full story on."

"That bad huh?" Stella asked. "Well, I'm already pretty invested in our friendship, as well as the friendship of your sisters, mainly Luna and Luan. Plus I have been your unofficial therapist, so I think whatever you have to tell me, I can take. Plus this way, you and your sisters can feel less awkward whenever something gets accidentally brought up."

"Are you sure that's a good idea? Like I said, some of this stuff is bad," Lincoln said.

"Well I would like to know, I mean it's up to you, I won't make you tell me anything, but I feel like it can help you get a lot off your chest if you do," Stella said. "It's your call Lincoln, just tell me when, and I'll give you a listening ear. Who knows, maybe after you I can try to help your other sisters, I'd like to help Lucy out, to think that she feels uncomfortable reading her Princess Pony book in front of her sisters seems so harsh."

"Lucy will get better with age," Lincoln said. "As for my other sisters...I guess Luan at least could use a listening ear, maybe Luna too."

"It'd be my pleasure," Stella said.

"Alright then Stella, can you meet me in the park tomorrow?" Lincoln asked. "I have a lot to get off my chest, I just hope you'll still be able to face my sisters after it's all said and done."

"Sure thing, see you tomorrow Lincoln," Stella said.

Lincoln waved bye as he went back to Vanzilla, Stella letting out a huge sigh after her friend had left. Deep down she wasn't sure what she was getting herself into, but she really wanted to help her friend. Lincoln's a nice boy, but she can easily tell he's very troubled, and stressed out too. Plus she's just really curious about the dynamic he has with his sisters.

"Can Lincoln really have such a complicated life?" Stella asked.

"It's beyond complicated," Lynn said, appearing next to Stella and startling her. "Sorry, did I startle you? Man you look so freaked out, kind of funny though, wonder if that's secretly why Lucy does it."

"Uh, Lynn?" Stella said, trying to get her attention.

"Speaking of secrets, Lucy likes Princess Pony?" Lynn said, not hearing Stella. So what she lied and made Lincoln take the blame? That's so not cool."

"Lynn.." Stella said, somewhat annoyed.

"I mean I get it's embarrassing, but it's taking away Lincoln's credibility, I mean our sisters barely think he's masculine as it is, making him think he read Princess Pony?" Lynn said, continuing to unknowingly ignore Stella, much to her annoyance. "I would never do that to Lincoln, which is why I'm his favorite."

"LYNN!" Stella shouted, startling Lynn.

"You know I'm right here, you don't need to shout," Lynn said.

"What are you doing at my house!?" Stella asked.

"Hitched a ride on Vanzilla, to make sure there's no drama between you and the little brother," Lynn said. "Don't want you two breaking up before you even start dating."

"Lynn, I'm sorry to tell you, but you're kind of getting on my nerves a little, I know you're trying to look out for Lincoln, but there's some things even you shouldn't do," Stella said. "Lincoln and I are trying to reach a new level in friendship, we're not rushing all the way to the top just yet."

"Yet huh? So there's still a chance?" Lynn asked.

Stella rolled her eyes, "Not if you keep meddling. Look, just let us do things out way for now, I just want to get closer to Lincoln."

"Good to know," Lynn said. "So about the Princess Pony thing, what exactly did Lynn tell you?"

Stella did not immediately respond, she simply grabbed her phone and sent a text message. Right after, Lynn heard some honking from Vanzilla, and a really angry Lori.

"Lynn! What the heck are you doing!?" Lori asked.

Stepping out of Vanzilla was an equally annoyed Lincoln, who marched over to Lynn and gestured inside. "Let's go!"

"Man, you try to do something nice for someone," Lynn said, walking off. "Catch ya later Stells."

"And stop calling me 'Stells'!" Stella shouted.

Lincoln sheepishly turned to Stella, "She didn't, you know, bother you too much did she?"

"We'll talk about it tomorrow," Stella said, going inside her house, wanting to cool down a bit.

Lincoln angrily turned toward Vanzilla, marching toward the vehicle, pretty ticked off about what just happened.

The drive home was pretty awkward for Lynn, neither Lincoln nor Lori wanted to say much to her. Whenever she did try talking, she would get a death glare from one of the two. While Lincoln didn't really scare her, Lori did prove intimidating. Lynn, tough as she is, would never intentionally provoke and angry Lori.

After arriving at home, Lynn was essentially dragged inside by Lori, Lincoln following closely behind, not feeling the least bit sorry for his older sister. Once inside, Lori had immediately told her mother about the stunt her thirteen year old daughter had pulled.

"Well then, Lynn, since you like taking surprise rides in Vanzilla, tomorrow you'll spend your day after school cleaning it, inside and out," Rita said. "Now to your room young lady."

"Ugh, alright mom," Lynn reluctantly said, going upstairs.

Rita turned her attention back to her only son, "I'm sorry about tonight dear, I hope Stella didn't feel too uncomfortable."

"She's fine, she doesn't mind it too much, but I'm hoping this won't happen again, I like her being here and I don't want her scared off," Lincoln said.

"We won't let that happen," Rita assured. "I already talked to some of your sisters, I know Luna and Luan are also just as concerned, they really seem to like your friend."

"Yeah, I really want Stella to feel at home here, she still likes the girls and all, but I'm just worried that one simple slip could ruin that," Lincoln said. "It's fine, tomorrow me and her are taking a walk to the park, so we'll talk things out there and see if I can get her to understand my family more."

"That's a great idea sweetie, anyway it's late, you should be getting to bed," Rita said.

"Yeah, I am pretty tired," Lincoln said, making his way to the stairs. "Alright, goodnight mom."

"Night dear," Rita said, making her way to her own room.

Upstairs, Lincoln was on his way to his room when Lucy called out, "Lincoln?"

"Hey Luce, what is it?" Lincoln asked.

"How's Stella, she's not angry is she?" Lucy asked.

"No, nothing happened that made her angry," Lincoln said. "Well maybe Lynn showing up uninvited in front of her house, but beyond that, no, she's not too angry."

"Good, I enjoy her presence, I hoped to not scare her away," Lucy said.

"We're gonna have a trip to the park tomorrow, just the two of us, I'll personally mend anything that might be broken, just leave it to me," Lincoln said.

"Well if you need any persuasion for her, be sure to tell her what I told you, I enjoy her being here," Lucy said.

"Well, she likes you too Lucy, she always has nice things to say, she might show interest in seeing your club at school," Lincoln said.

"Uh...I'd rather she not, that might definitely scare her off," Lucy said. "Also, if it's not too much to ask, would I be able to stay with you again?"

"A second night?" Lincoln asked. "Still haven't made up with Lynn?"

"We're not technically fighting, but I'm still not happy with her, I don't like the things she's done tonight, or even recently," Lucy said.

"Well I don't mind, you're actually a good roommate to have, stay as long as you'd like," Lincoln said.

"You'd really be ok with that?" Lucy asked.

"Sure, you can go back to Lynn at your own pace," Lincoln said.

Lucy smiled at her big brother, "You're the best Lincoln." She moved in and embraced him in a hug. "I love you."

Lincoln looked a bit shocked to hear that. Knowing that Lucy loves him isn't a surprise, all the siblings loved each other dearly, but they usually don't admit that, most of them at least, mainly due to not wanting to sound mushy. Lucy even less since she doesn't like showing displays of affection, so a hug followed by her admitting her love seemed a bit shocking to take in, give how rare it was.

"Uh, love you too Luce," Lincoln said, still feeling awkward but returning the hug. "Well come on inside."

The two siblings got ready for another impromptu sleepover, though this did not go unnoticed by Lynn.

"So when Lucy does something bad, it's easily forgiven, I try to help and I get looked down upon," Lynn said. "Just wait til I get Lincoln and Stella together, then I will prove I'm his best sister." Lynn sighed in annoyance, "Lincoln better be grateful, doing a lot for him. I know I may have annoyed him, but he brings it on himself at times, plus I just like spending time with him, why can't that loser get that through his skull?" Lynn laid on her bed, sadly looking up to the ceiling, "I really do love my little brother, I just wish he could see what I'm doing for him is to help him. I don't want to hurt him, before Stella, before Clyde, I was Lincoln's best friend, I'm not going to let him forget who loves him the most out of all of us." Lynn simply went to sleep, feeling a bit lonely for the second night in a row.

The following day was gonna be quite interesting. Lincoln and Stella had caught their friends up to what happened at the house the previous day, leaving out unneeded details, at least as far as anything too personal to talk about.

Stella felt quite eager though, knowing that later she expected Lincoln to have quite a lot to say, deep down hoping he doesn't have any second thoughts. She really wants to know more about his family's dynamic, why, she can't explain. Maybe her curiosity of seeing such a large family, maybe just from her envy of not having a family of that size, maybe in hopes that she can get them to appreciate what they have and never take it for granted. Maybe it's also her desire to want to befriend more of the sisters, so understanding how they function could be the key.

The school day passed, and as promised, Lincoln and Stella made their way to the park, finding a nice bench to sit on, Stella being all ears for her best friend.

"Well, here we are," Stella said. "Now, before you say anything...are you a hundred percent sure you're ready to talk about what you're feeling?"

"I thought you wanted to know," Lincoln said.

"I do, but, I do want you to feel comfortable," Stella said, looking Lincoln in the eyes. "I won't ever make you do anything you don't want to do."

"I know, you're a great friend Stella, I'm glad we can talk about this stuff really, it's hard to do so with Clyde sometimes, I mean he's tried to and he's helped me out, but given his own insecurities, there's only so much he can do," Lincoln said.

"We all have insecurities Lincoln, even me. Maybe it will help to talk to all your friends about this stuff, especially Clyde," Stella placed her hand on Lincoln's shoulder. "We all care about you after all, and you mean a lot."

"Yeah, thanks Stella," Lincoln said, smiling back at his friend.

Nearby, a few of Lori's classmates, Beck, Dana, Joey and Chaz happened to be passing through, talking among each other, sharing a few laughs when one of them noticed the two kids on the bench.

"Hey isn't that Lori's little brother?" Dana asked.

"And he's with a girl!" Becky said. "A cute one at that!"

"Aw, and she has her hand on his shoulder," Dana pointed out.

"Whoa, is the little dude on a date?" Chaz asked. "Awesome, way to go."

"They look so cute together, I totally ship it!" Becky said.

"Let's stay and watch, I wanna see if they kiss!" Dana said.

"That seems kind of creepy," Chaz pointed out. "I mean, if he sees us staring, he might get weirded out, and he'll tell Lori, you know how she gets when she's mad."

"We'll just stay a little bit, maybe I can get a few pictures too!" Dana said. "I'm sure he won't mind, he's our friend's little brother after all."

"Exactly, we owe it to our best friend's little brother to make sure his date goes well," Becky said.

"Uh...alright, but just for a bit," Chaz said. "Maybe I can even give him some guy advice. Besides we Ace Savvy fans have to stick together."

"True that!" Joey said.

"Oh heck yeah!" Becky said.

"Yeah...Ace Savvy, gotta love that Ace!" Dana awkwardly said, getting a glare from her friends.

"Don't even bother faking it Dana," Becky said. "Oh, focus, they're talking!"

"I can't hear what they're saying," Chaz said.

"I'm just here to see them kiss, besides if we get too close they might notice us, let's just hang back for now," Dana said.

With Lincoln, he had began his story. "Alright, first up. Remember that Sister Fight Protocol that Leni brought up?" Upon getting a nod from Stella, Lincoln continued, "Well the first time I found out about it, they never actually told me, I learned because I stumbled into the house when it was in affect. See when I got home, I couldn't eat a snack or go to the bathroom because Lori and Leni had just been fighting and they were using those places to calm themselves, so they didn't want to be bothered by anyone."

"Alright, makes sense," Stella said. "They knew to go somewhere and get some peace."

"So it was annoying because I wanted a snack, and I wanted to use the bathroom, and I was not going in a bucket that Lana tried to give me," Lincoln said. "I couldn't even watch TV because it would have been too loud or something."

"Too loud? What were you going to watch?" Stella asked.

"A monster truck show," Lincoln answered.

"Oh...I can see why that could be a problem, if I'm angry about something then that's the last thing I would have needed to hear," Stella said.

"Well they didn't have to beat me up just for grabbing the remote, I mean I'm not surprised Lynn and Lana did that, but I expected better from Lucy," Lincoln said.

"Yeah, that might have been a bit extreme, probably seems like something Lynn would do," Stella said, looking a little annoyed at the moment. She then remembered Lincoln was still telling the story, "Sorry, continue."

Lincoln figured Stella was still upset about last night, that might be a problem later, but he'll just have to go with it. "Now since I've helped my sisters with arguments before, mainly the twins and at one point, Lynn and Lana, I figured I could talk to Lori and Leni, get them to hug and make up. Unfortunately they just got angrier, mainly since I worded some things wrong, so I can take blame for that. Now here's the thing, I didn't know much about this Protocol, because none of my sisters bothered to tell me beforehand, why, I don't know. My parents knew, even Bobby knew, yet I didn't? It's like they don't trust me!"

"Did you ask them?" Stella asked.

"I tried to, they told me it wasn't any of my business, yet for whatever reason, they decided to include my stuff in this, using my sheets to create a barricade, or using my room for one of them to stay in, like why use my stuff if you never wanted to tell me?" Lincoln said. "Honestly my sisters can be very poor planners, I mean that's what happens when they don't include me. If I had been around for the creation of this 'Sister Fight Protocol', then I guarantee that I would made it so much better, no one knows my sisters like I do."

"Alright, so what happened when they tried using your stuff?" Stella asked.

"I came up with a genius solution, made Luna and Leni switch rooms, it seemed fool proof!" Lincoln said. "But unfortunately, my sisters are beyond fools, because then it led to Luna and Luan arguing because one sided with Lori and the other sided with Leni. Then it led to more arguments, because the twins were arguing, Lynn and Lucy began arguing, even Lisa started losing her cool, and she hates using 'inane human emotions' as she puts it. So I did the only thing I could do."

"Which was?" Stella asked.

"I bolted and ran for it, straight to Clyde's house where I stayed for a bit," Lincoln said. "It was kind of funny because he dressed up like his therapist and had me explain the situation to him."

"He...did what?" Stella asked, then giggled a bit. "He seriously did that? He's so funny."

"Yeah, and it did help, what's funny is that I went back the next morning, and everyone's calm," Lincoln said. "Apparently they all got the arguing out of their systems and made up. According to Lisa, all I had to do was leave and things got better."

"That's...a weird way to put it," Stella said.

"Yeah, it's like me being there causes them stress or something, maybe I'm over thinking it, but it's just so stupid that it even happened in the first place, all they had to do was include me in this and it never would have gotten that bad!" Lincoln said. "I mean if my sisters are not happy, I'd like to be able to help them, I just want to feel like I make a difference to them."

"I'm sure they know you do a lot for them, maybe this is just a 'girl' thing or something," Stella said. "I mean, maybe they never told you because it's a 'Sister' Fight Protocol, maybe your parents know because they had to approve it, maybe Bobby knew because Lori probably just felt like telling him. But if I may ask, what got them so angry in the first place?"

"Lori and Leni bought the same dress from a store and got mad when the other refused to return it," Lincoln said.

Stella couldn't believe what she just heard, she expected something more serious, at least teenage girl serious. "That's it? They bought the same dress? What they can't have the same dress?"

"That's what I said! I mean Leni is always borrowing Lori's clothes, usually without permission, so each of them having their own dress just seems fair, I mean I wouldn't have been mad if my sisters brought the same shirt as me!" Lincoln said. "I even told them it happened to me and Clyde once, we loved that we were thinking the same in regards to fashion, but Lucy just told me that it's a sister thing that I wouldn't understand, so stupid."

"I hate to say it, but yeah, that is kind of stupid," Stella said. "But I guess it can't be helped. Teenagers have the weirdest problems, I hope I don't get that way when I grow up."

"I'll keep you down to Earth," Lincoln promised.

Stella placed her arm around his shoulder, "Thanks pal, you're the best."

From the distance, Becky was squealing like a fangirl, "So cute!"

"Come on little guy, return the favor," Chaz encouraged.

"Kiss, kiss, kiss!" Dana cheered, awaiting that kiss.

"So what else is there that's so bad?" Stella asked. "Or was that all?"

"No, there's one other thing, and it's really bad," Lincoln said. "Before I tell you, just know I've forgiven my sisters for everything, so try not to be too...enraged."

"What can be worse than having a massive argument over a silly dress?" Stella asked.

"The time my whole family thought I was bad luck," Lincoln said.

Stella seemed to remember Lynn mentioning something about bad luck the other day, "Huh, how did that happen?"

"You know how all my sisters have different things they like doing?" Lincoln asked, getting a nod from Stella. "Lori has her golf, Leni has her fashion shows, Lola has her pageants, Luna has her concerts and Luan has her comedy shows. Well one time, a few months back, I had to attend all of that, back to back, and more. It was exhausting keeping up with everything, of course I did it because I have to be a good brother to my sisters, but one day I just had enough, I needed some 'me time', I wanted to do something I wanted to do, such as read the new Ace Savvy comic. So one day I tried sneaking into my room before my sisters asked me to go anywhere with them, unfortunately Lynn caught me and asked me to attend her baseball game, since I was the only sibling that hasn't gone yet."

"So you ended up having to go?" Stella asked.

"Yeah, I did, she lost and blamed me, said I was 'bad luck'," Lincoln said. "I mean I didn't even want to go, so for her to call me 'bad luck' was very infuriating."

"That's very poor sportsmanship from her," Stella said, frowning and crossing her arms. "Kind of disappointing."

"Yeah, then from there, every time one of my sisters tried inviting me someplace, Lynn would tell them that I was bad luck and to not invite me," Lincoln said. "Now get this, this was the moment I made the stupidest decision I could have made in my life," Lincoln said, bracing his friend. "I went along with it, convincing my sisters that yes, I am bad luck."

"Uh, why would you do that?" Stella asked.

"Well I figured they would not invite me and I finally get some 'me time', like I wanted," Lincoln said. "And it worked, none of my sisters bothered me and I finally had a chance to relax."

"Something tells me that didn't last long though," Stella said.

"You guessed it, see me being the 'Man with a Plan', my plans always go well, but this one went too well," Lincoln said. "Soon my sisters stopped inviting me to anything at all, including the movies, beach and Dairy Land. So while I didn't have to do the boring stuff, I couldn't do the fun stuff either!" Lincoln said. "Then it gets worse, they didn't even want me in the house, I had to sleep in the backyard! In the cold! They even fed me through a doggy door! I wanted 'me time', but not that much!"

Lincoln took a deep breath, hoping to not get to frustrated, but this was a pretty bad event he was reliving.

"I tried to tell them I wasn't bad luck, but they didn't believe me, so I snuck over to Lynn's game the next day, disguised as a mascot, and they won, finally proving I wasn't bad luck. But then they thought the suit was lucky and made me wear it for like a week. You know what it's like wearing a mascot suit at a hot beach? I almost missed the cold nights, I was sweating from spots I didn't even know could sweat! I got a huge rash on top of that too! Thankfully that didn't last long but it was a pain in the butt to deal with! It was the worst two days of my life and I regret even thinking of the idea, all my stuff even got sold because they thought it was 'tainted', and if I ever see that stupid suit again I'm gonna lose my stinkin' mind!"

Lincoln panted a bit, nearly having lost his cool again, but slowly he took a breath and let out a huge sigh, smiling in relief. "Wow, it feels so great getting that off my chest, I feel so much better." He turned to his friend, "Thanks for hearing me out Stella, this was a great idea." He then noticed something different about her, a blank less expression. "Uh, Stella? You still there?" Lincoln waved his hand in front of her face, trying to get her to snap out of it.

"Tell me again, who started this rumor?" Stella asked.

"Lynn did, why?" Lincoln asked.

"Lincoln, I know you said you forgave them, and I am usually not a violent person," Stella clenched her fist. "But for the first time, I really, really just want to punch you sister right in her jaw!"

That surprised Lincoln a bit, "Uh..."

"How could she even do something so stupid! Bad luck!? Locking you out!? Lincoln, how did you even put up with that? Why would your other sisters go along with it!? Also what about your parents? Didn't they do anything!?" Stella asked.

"My parents were kind of useless, honestly they didn't toughen up that much until after this whole debacle, guess it was a low point and they needed to take charge and not let my sisters walk all over them," Lincoln said.

"Still, your sisters, I can't believe they would believe Lynn! I can't believe she's that petty! Doesn't she think of how others feel?" Stella asked.

"Easy Stella, I know you're mad but don't let it get to you," Lincoln said. "Look, maybe I should have just not lied, that's the only reason they believed Lynn."

"Lynn shouldn't have said that in the first place, she should have been happy you took time out of your schedule to see her, wasn't that enough?" Stella asked.

"Well it's not like I had a choice, since she threatened me with a baseball bat when I tried to tell her 'no' so...I just made this worse, dang it," Lincoln braced for the storm Stella was about to unleash.

"When I see your sisters again, I'm gonna have some very strong words for them, especially Lynn!" Stella said, gritting her teeth in anger.

"Please Stella, don't be too mad at them, I've already forgiven them," Lincoln said.

"You truly forgive that? Doesn't it make you angry too?" Stella asked.

"Of course, it made me furious, both the Sister Fight nonsense and this Bad Luck fiasco," Lincoln said. "But, my sisters still mean a lot to me. They're not bad people, they're just really stupid sometimes. Plus they did apologize, some of them at least, I'm just glad it's over with, and hopefully it won't ever happen again."

"It better not, or I'm gonna be really ticked off," Stella said. "Lincoln, you're a kid and sweet boy, you did not deserve any of that!"

"I appreciate that Stella, but I disagree, I made mistakes too, I shouldn't have made things worse during the Protocol, and I shouldn't have lied about the Bad Luck thing, I just need to work on being honest with my sisters, most problems we have is because I probably give them the impression that I don't trust them," Lincoln said. "I mean, yeah I don't sometimes, but I should try to make an effort. I'm just stubborn in my own way, I'm trying to be strong on my own, but I guess I really do need help from others." Lincoln placed his hand on Stella's shoulder, "Please, if you do need to confront them about this, go easy on them. The little sisters, they don't know any better, not even Lisa, she may be a genius, but she's still only four, she's a bit naïve on occasion. As for my older sisters, Leni's a bit gullible, so she didn't realize how bad it was I'm sure, Luna and Luan have tried making up for it, Lori and Lynn...Well I can't comment. But please try not to pick a fight with Lynn, no offense, but she'll destroy you."

Stella grunted in annoyance, "I'd like to see her try." She turned back to Lincoln, "Alright, I'll try to be understanding, but I do need to hear it from their perspective. I mean Luna and Luan only have nice things to say about you, so I guess I can believe that they still truly care about you, it just upsets me to know they could make a mistake like that.

"Mistakes are what make us human," Lincoln said.

"You're way too understanding Lincoln," Stella said, then brought him in for a hug, really holding him tightly and close to her body. "But that's what I like about you, and I'm so happy we're friends."

Lincoln returned the hug, "Me too Stella, thanks for listening, I really do feel better."

"I'm glad," Stella said, finally smiling a bit as she embraced this boy.

Nearby the teens are getting really happy and excited, Dana taking some pictures while Becky squealed in delight.

"Hugs, hugs, HUGS!" Dana shouted, this actually getting the attention of Lincoln and Stella.

"Are those Lori's friends!?" Lincoln asked, alerting the teens.

"He sees us! Run for it!" Becky shouted, the teens running out of there, much to Lincoln's confusion.

"I think my family's weirdness is rubbing off on others," Lincoln said.

Back at Great Lakes, Carlotta is seen looking over some plans with Sid on a table. "Based on what Lori's told me, this girl seems sweet on the outside, but on the inside, she's a bit insecure. Plus she already got a taste of what being with The Loud Family can be like, including the chaos that comes with it. Apparently she already has doubts she could make it work with Lincoln."

"So we emotionally manipulate her, right?" Sid asked.

"You got it, now Lori's gonna be doing most of the work, and she told me she already tried planting the seeds, but we gotta do what we can to water them," Carlotta said. "Being part of a big family myself, I know just how to help Lori show this girl the downsides, plus with my cunning mind and occasional mental games, we can seal our victory."

"Mental games?" Sid asked.

"Hey, you wanna survive in High School, you gotta know how to make things work for you, and how to have the advantage over your rivals," Carlotta said. "The more they doubt themselves, the more you gain, a girl who doesn't think she's pretty won't ask out the hottest guy in class, making it that much easier for him to really see who matters most."

"Uh, are you speaking from experience?" Sid asked.

"Duh, of course," Carlotta said, then frowned a bit. "I'm never going through that weakness again."

"Huh?" Sid asked.

"Nothing, but this is where your help comes in, you know younger girls much better than me, you can get in close and make the needed move," Carlotta said.

"How do we do that?" Sid asked. "How do we enact this plan at all? Lincoln and this girl live in Royal Woods."

"Bobby plans to take Ronnie Anne there this weekend, we're all gonna try to go and see if we can convince your parents to let you come as well," Carlotta said. "We're gonna plan a trip to the Amusement Park Dairy Land and-"

"Dairy Land!? Sweet! I totally wanna go on the Milk Shaker ride I heard so much about!" Sid said.

"Focus," Carlotta said. "You can go on all the rides you want, but make we stick to the plan."

"Right," Sid said. "So when do we-"

"Sid?" They heard. They turned to see Ronnie Anne standing nearby. "Uh, what are you two doing?"

"Uh...I was just," Carlotta quickly pulled out a make-up kit. "Helping her with a blemish!" She powdered Sid's face, "No girl should leave a skin blemish unchecked."

"Yeah, those lousy blemishes, am I right?" Sid asked, then coughed a bit from the powder.

Ronnie Anne wasn't sure what to make of this, she found it hard to believe that Sid was willingly letting her face get powered, "Right, sure."

Sid got off the chair, "Come on, let's go to the park, I want to try that halfpipe!"

"Make sure you bring your first aid, don't want a repeat of last time!" Ronnie Anne said.

"I won't forget!" Sid said, running off to grab her stuff, leaving a displeased Ronnie Anne to face her cousin.

Carlotta could tell Ronnie Anne didn't look to happy, so she tried swaying the topic. "So, you got those candy bars from the bodega or-"

"What are you up to!?" Ronnie Anne asked.

"What makes you think I'm up to something?" Carlotta asked, feigning innocence.

"You barely hang out with Sid alone, and when you do, it sure isn't to apply make-up!" Ronnie Anne said.

"Well what else would we be doing?" Carlotta asked.

"Sid asked me some interesting questions yesterday, such as who I have a crush on," Ronnie Anne said. "She mentioned the names of a few boys, then she made it super obvious she really wanted to know if it was Lincoln!"

"Are you sure it was obvious? Maybe that's just what you're heart is telling you," Carlotta suggested.

"Out of the list of names she gave me, she mentioned Lincoln every other time, she even stressed his name at the 'end' of her list," Ronnie Anne said.

"Well you two were friends at Royal Woods, maybe she wants to see you two together," Carlotta said.

"She's never brought this up before, and I find it strange it's happening now," Ronnie Anne said. "Not I think I know why you and Lori were being so secretive this past weekend! You're trying to set us up!"

"Aren't you overreacting?" Carlotta asked.

"I know what I saw Carlotta! What does this have to do with that Stella chick!? I don't care if Lincoln has another friend that's a girl, I don't even care if she's his girlfriend! I don't like Lincoln that way!" Ronnie Anne said.

"You say that, yet I see a blush on your face," Carlotta said.

The tomboy rolled her eyes in annoyance, "Look, just stay out of my business! Don't try this matchmaking lovey dovey stuff because I ain't interested, capisce!?"

Carlotta sighed, "Don't worry, I won't do anything you wouldn't want."

"Good," Ronnie Anne said, grabbing her gear. "See you later."

Carlotta waved bye, before grinning mischievously. "And don't worry cuz, I know exactly what you want." She went back to her planning, texting Lori some details.

* * *

**For starters, I am happy that Stella doesn't seem to come off too much like a Mary-Sue so far. Not knowing too much about her due to her limited appearances, there's only so much I can work with. So hopefully she's less Mary-Sue now, having her own faults.**

**Second, yeah, a NSL and BitF callback, hopefully it doesn't feel repetitive or come across too forced, but it just felt inevitable. Hopefully this story is still enjoyable despite that, and I always continue looking forward to updating. Thanks for the support so far.**


	8. Emotions and Tensions

It was an odd walk home for Lincoln, Stella opting to go back to her house, wanting to blow off some steam, knowing she would probably lose her patience if she had to deal with Lynn, especially after now. He hoped he didn't affect his friendship with Stella negatively, and he really hoped he didn't ruin anything for his sisters, especially Luna and Luan.

As he made his way past his house, he noticed Lynn in the driveway, cleaning up Vanzilla, as dictated by her mother the previous day. She hadn't noticed him, as she was inside vacuuming, and he didn't want to deal with her twenty questions about his rendezvous with Stella, so he opted to go inside.

When Lincoln arrived, he heard the usual chaos, the twins chasing each other around, Lisa trying to prevent something from exploding, Leni using a blow dryer in the living room for some reason, and Luna jamming on her guitar.

The first to notice Lincoln's arrival was Lily, the one year old clumsily walking towards him, "Inkon! Inkon!"

"Hey there Lily," Lincoln said, lifting up the infant. "Surviving the chaos alright?"

His only response was a giggle from Lily, a sound he loved to hear. While he loves all his sisters the same, Lily is special, being the baby of the family, and possibly his last hope among his sisters. If there was one sister who has never treated him harshly, it was easily Lily, but of course she's too young to even know how to be harsh.

"Hey you're back," he heard the voice of Luan say. He turned his attention to his comedy loving sister.

"Hi Luan," Lincoln greeted, putting his baby sister down. He then noticed Luan looking a little disappointed. "Uh, did I come back at a bad time?"

"Oh no it's, I was kind of hoping Stella would be here too, I wanted to talk to her about the gig tomorrow," Luan said.

"Yeah she had to go home, but she does want to talk to you soon," Lincoln said.

"Oh good, thinking about it, I should have given her my phone number so we can talk back and forth easier," Luan said. "Think she'll be by tomorrow afternoon? Or maybe you can call or text her some details?"

"Well...here's the thing," Lincoln said. "The reason Stella wanted to talk to me is...man this is gonna be awkward."

"What's wrong?" Luan asked, then started getting an idea. "Is this about yesterday?"

"Kind of," Lincoln said, nervously rubbing his head. "We did talk a little more about The Sister Fight Protocol, she even wanted an example...so I had to give her one."

"You mean the dress thing?" Luan asked. "Well I guess it's fine, looking back it was kind of silly, I've told some of my friends too, we got a good laugh."

"Yeah, she's not really bothered about that...but she did also ask me about the bad luck fiasco," Lincoln said.

This Luan wasn't prepared for, "Wh-what!? The bad luck thing? How did she even-"

"Apparently Lynn told her, I don't know how much but it was enough to pique her curiosity," Lincoln explained.

Luan clenched her fist in annoyance, "That doofus! What was she thinking!?" She began to worry a bit, knowing that her new friend has knowledge of one of the family's lowest points. "Well...what did she say? I mean, did you tell her a lot?"

"I tried not going into detail, just that I came up with a bad idea and I suffered the consequences, she's a little unhappy but I'm sure she'll mellow out," Lincoln said. "If it makes you feel better, most of her wrath is aimed at Lynn. Apparently Lynn's been bothering her a bit, mainly about the matchmaking."

"Well Lynn deserves to have Stella dislike her," Luan said, then started twiddling her fingers. "So, she doesn't dislike me, does she?"

Lincoln shrugged, "Honestly, I don't know. I hope she doesn't, I told her that I forgave all of you, I'm sure she'll be understanding."

"Yeah hopefully," Luan said. "Say, why did you forgive us for that? I mean, that was pretty mean of us to do, treat you like a luck charm."

"Like I said, I mostly blame myself," Lincoln said, then started arrogantly brushing his chest. "After all, I was pretty convincing, quality acting if I do say so myself, I can probably go into Theater with those skills."

"Come on Lincoln, this isn't a joke," Luan said, little annoyed by her brother brushing this off too easily.

"Well you are the expert on jokes," Lincoln said. "I'm sorry if that seemed obnoxious, but sometimes you gotta find the bright side of certain things. Besides the way I see it, when you get that low, you can only go up, and boy have we gone up."

"You really think so?" Luan asked. "I mean, it still feels like things are the same."

"Feels different for me at least," Lincoln said. "Look don't worry about it, once it sinks in for Stella she'll come around, she's very laid back, I'm sure right now she's probably understood my forgiveness and is eager to see you again."

"I hope so..." Luan said, her guilt coming back from her previous mistakes. She can't bear to lose a friend like Stella.

Listening from the top of the stairs, Lucy could sense Luan's worries, and even some doubt in Lincoln. Again she cursed her jock sister, it seems she still hasn't realized that she's doing more harm than good. A bad feeling passed through her, she knew that the calm was coming to a close, and a storm was about to pass through.

Back with Stella, the normally cheery girl looked to be in a really foul mood as she walked home, passing by Flip's gas station.

"I honestly can't believe that would happen, the dress thing I can somewhat understand, but treating their only brother like a bad luck charm?" Stella groaned in frustration. "I can't fathom how Lincoln could be ok with that, I mean I guess it's not too surprising, he's usually very passive, even when he gets annoyed, but to put up with that? I don't even think I could do that."

As she walked, she heard a familiar voice call out to her, "Hey Stella!"

Stella turned to see Clyde coming out of Flip's shop, Flippie in hand. "Oh hi Clyde! Didn't expect to see you out here." Stella thought a moment, "Actually I guess it's not surprising, you and Lincoln love coming here. I'd like it more if Flip tended to the bathrooms better."

"Yeah good luck with that," Clyde joked. "Little surprised to see you here myself though, weren't you meeting Lincoln at the park today?"

"I already did, we just had a little chat," Stella said, looking to the side. "Well, not little, it was...pretty intense."

Clyde immediately noticed a solemn look on her eyes, plus her tone in voice told him something was up. "Is something bothering you Stella?"

"Clyde, how long have you been friends with Lincoln exactly?" Stella asked.

"Six years, seven in the end of October," Clyde said.

"And during that time, you've gotten to know his sisters pretty well right?" Stella asked.

"Yeah, I mean I never really hung out with them much, but the times I did, I had a blast," Clyde said. "I still remember the time Leni tried helping me with my crush on Lori, so I wouldn't get a nosebleed or act like a robot around her, or the time Lynn gave me and Lincoln great advice about middle school."

"Huh? What advice did she give you?" Stella asked, already expecting the worse.

"Remember that orientation thing our school had for Royal Woods Middle School?" Clyde asked. "Well Lynn offered to be our buddy for that and told us helpful advice, like never ask for directions, or always be quick to grab a seat. Granted it almost went really bad for us because we ended up annoying a few kids and they told us to meet them after school."

"Wait, they wanted to beat you up?" Stella asked.

"Yeah, well we thought that, but they were just messing around," Clyde said. "Lynn just gave us advice based on her first year, where she was bullied a lot, which is why she developed this tough attitude, and tried to instill it on me and Lincoln, I mean yeah it failed but she had good intentions."

"Yeah well Lynn always seems to have good intentions, yet she barely thinks about the consequences," Stella spat out, to Clyde's surprise.

"Um, Stella, this talk you had with Lincoln, and this question about his sisters...are things going bad? You haven't gotten into a scuffle with any of them, have you?" Clyde asked.

"If I did, it would probably be with Lynn," Stella admitted. "I hate to say this, but out of all of Lincoln's sisters, Lynn's the only one who's rubbed me the wrong way. First off she's been trying to get me and Lincoln to be boyfriend and girlfriend, even though we've told her we're not interested. At first it was cute that she wanted to help her little brother, and flattering that she's basically giving me her blessing to date her brother, but now it's just getting on our nerves."

"Well Lincoln's sisters have a tendency to try setting him up with a girl, and get too curious whenever a girl shows interest in him or he shows interest in a girl," Clyde said. "Happened a lot with Ronnie Anne."

"I get that, but at least the other sisters backed off once Lincoln made it clear I just wanted to be friends, I mean yeah some still have hope, and I can't fault them for that, but Lynn is just so pushy!" Stella said. "Also, she says such terrible things about her siblings, including Lincoln. I can tell she causes him a lot of frustration and it just bothers me that he goes through that!"

"Well he doesn't mind, he loves his sisters after all," Clyde said. "Yeah they can be pretty bad, I mean I've seen first hand how mad they can be at him, and they do tend to jump to conclusions, but they always work things out in the end. I mean I can tell you stories, but I think it's best just to ask Lincoln."

"I've already asked Lincoln about some things, like The Sister Fight Protocol," Stella said.

Clyde cringed a bit at the mention of the very protocol that caused such a ruckus at The Loud House, "Yeah, I remember Lincoln coming to me about that, must have been rough."

"Does Lincoln often talk to you about stuff that happens between him and his sisters?" Stella asked.

"Yeah, lots of times, I've been there for some," Clyde said. "Like I said, I've got stories."

"...Did Lincoln ever mention an incident that involved...luck?" Stella asked.

Clyde's face went somber, "Uh...did he, like, mention anything to you?"

"He already told me the whole situation, it really ticked me off," Stella said. "But, has he told you or..."

"Yeah, I know about it, he told me about it after I asked why he was wearing a squirrel suit," Clyde said. "Not their fondest moment, I can tell you that. I almost stopped loving Lori because of it, until I realized that I can't go without her."

"If you really liked Lori that much, why did you try hooking up with me?" Stella asked.

"What? A guy can't spread out? Consider it an honor that you got my attention away from Lori, the only other girl that came close was Lucy's friend Haiku," Clyde said.

"Huh, that's such a cute name," Stella said, then shook it off. "Not the point, so how did you end up forgiving the sisters...assuming you did."

"Simple, because Lincoln forgave them," Clyde said. "I mean, I can't be mad at Lily, Lisa, Lola and Lana and Lucy, they're younger than me, and they just didn't know any better. Leni, same, she's sweet but she can be easily fooled. It really came to a matter of trying to forgive Lynn, Luan, Luna and Lori. Lincoln just reassured me that they won't make a mistake like that again, plus after all we've been through, like Luna taking me to my first concert, Luan always finding a way to make me laugh and Lori just being the amazing girl she is, it really wasn't that hard. My advice, go talk to them about it, I know they regret what happened, Lincoln's upset his sisters too and they find a way to forgive him."

"You mentioned the positives of Luan, Luna and Lori, but what about Lynn?" Stella asked.

"Uh, well prior to the Middle School thing, I didn't have that many memories with Lynn, but I do appreciate her because the reason I was able to meet Lincoln is because he was ditched by Lynn while they were Trick-or-Treating, so I owed my friendship to Lynn," Clyde said. "Plus she did once compliment my hacky sack skills, so there's that too."

"You mentioned being friends with Lincoln for Six years, that means you were both five when you met," Stella said.

"Uh, yeah?" Clyde confirmed. "Why?"

"So Lynn ditched a five year old boy?" Stella asked, making Clyde a bit nervous.

"In her defense, she was seven, she had no concept of responsibility," Clyde said. "Easy mistake for a kid to make Stella."

"Clearly she never learned any," Stella said, still pouting a bit.

"Stella, my advice, just talk to his sisters, let them know how you feel," Clyde said. "Maybe it's easier for me to forgive them because the Louds are a second family to me, sometimes I feel like I'm one of them, they certainly treat me like family, for all the good things and the bad. Didn't you get a chance to bond with any of them? Lincoln mentioned you really having great chemistry with Luna and Luan, do you think they would intentionally hurt Lincoln? Do they seem like bad girls? Or just girls who are prone to mistakes?"

Stella thought about this a bit, Luna does seem to value Lincoln a lot, and he has always talked great things about her in the past. Luan, however, she was something special. Based on the talk she had with Luan, she knew the comedy loving girl deeply cared for Lincoln, based on their conversation the other day. She owed it to Luan to hear her out at least, plus if Lincoln really did hate his sisters for the bad luck fiasco, then why would he be so willing to introduce Stella to them, he would have just avoided it.

"You're right Clyde, maybe I judged them too harshly," Stella said.

"It happens, his sisters get more flack then they deserve sometimes, it's about looking past all that," Clyde said. "Ooh, I should get going, my dads expect me to be home soon, I don't want them to get worried."

"Oh, alright, bye Clyde, thanks for the advice," Stella said.

"Anything for a friend," Clyde said, making his way home.

Stella was left with a lot to think about as she made her way home. Yes she now sees the Loud girls in a new light, mostly unfavorable, but she's still getting to know them, and she still wants to get to know them, especially Luna and Luan. They're way too nice to just give up on, perhaps she'll try to rekindle something soon.

Back at the Loud Home, Lori was still texting Carlotta, the day was getting closer, when they finally enact their plan. Carlotta had alerted Lori to Ronnie Anne catching on thanks to her friend Sid making it too obvious.

Lori wasn't worried, all they had to do was stick to the plan, plus if Carlotta was right about Ronnie Anne's feelings, she wouldn't attempt to resist the idea of seeing Lincoln again.

During her texting, she got another text from her friend Dana, much to her confusion. "Huh? What could she want?" She checked the text and to her shock and surprise, there were pictures of Lincoln and Stella at the park, Dana having gotten pics of their conversation, and what's more interesting is the last picture with the two hugging. This didn't seem like a normal friendly hug to her, it seemed like something much more. What irked Lori the most was a bunch of heart emojis with one phrase that really pushed Lori's buttons at the moment.

'_Lincoln + Star Shirt QT Forever!_'

"Dang it Dana, you're gonna ruin so many things for me!" Lori said, angrily texting to her friend, asking for all the details she knew. Though as she did this, she got more texts, some from Becky telling Lori how cute her little brother's girlfriend was, one from Chaz offering to come by and help give Lincoln some guy talk, and one from Joey asking how happy her sisters were about the couple. "How many of my friends know!?"

Lori quickly dialed one of her friends, that being Becky, the red-haired girl currently blow drying her hair. She had placed the machine down and answered her friend's call. "What's up?"

"Becky! What's with those pictures of my little brother you, Dana, Joey and Chaz just sent out!?" Lori asked.

"Oh just some stuff we saw at the park today," Becky said. "We were hanging out there when we saw your brother with his little girlfriend."

"That's not his girlfriend," Lori immediately corrected. "It's just a friend from school he's been hanging out with lately."

"Really? Well even if they aren't dating, give it some times and it can lead to something," Becky said. "I mean, just from their body language, and that big hug at the end, I can tell they're heading for a really special relationship with each other."

"I doubt that, they were pretty keen about not dating," Lori said. "Heard it directly from them."

"Well it's one thing to say what you're doing, and another thing to show," Becky said. "I can tell that girl really likes your brother, and I can see he really likes her, just from the way they look at each other, how gentle they are, they just connect. I mean why else would they be in the park together? Sure seems like they're trying to grow closer."

"Well what exactly did you see?" Lori asked. "Did they...kiss?"

"No, and Dana's really disappointed that they didn't, she was so eager to see it happen," Becky said, much to Lori's annoyance. "It just looked like they were talking, not sure what but they did seem upset about something, so cute how they comforted each other though."

"Upset? About what?" Lori asked.

"I don't know, I couldn't hear what either of them were saying, aside from things like 'Sister Fights', 'Bad Luck' and I even heard them saying something about your sister Lynn," Becky said. "Hey your sisters are being nice to this girl right?"

Lori's pupils shrank, knowing how close her friends were to finding out about some very embarrassing moments for the family. "Uh..."

"Lori?" Becky repeated. "Everything ok there?"

"I'm fine," Lori said. "Sorry but I gotta go, I have a few things to say to my little brother."

"Oh, some sisterly advice, great idea," Becky said. "No one knows girls better than other girls, and I know you'll help your brother get his girl."

"Oh believe me, I will," Lori said, almost sinisterly, though not enough for Becky to catch.

"Well, we'll see you in class tomorrow," Becky said. "And maybe afterward-"

"Yeah, yeah, good talk, catch you tomorrow," Lori hastily said, hanging up and making her way outside her room. She marched over to Lincoln's door, knocking on it. "Lincoln!? It's Lori!"

"Come in!" Lincoln said, the older sister going in with the permission she wouldn't have respected anyway.

As Lori opened up, she found Lincoln reading his comics seemingly without a care in the world. "Hey there baby brother, how was your day at the park?"

"Fine..." Lincoln said, somewhat suspicious. "Why do you ask?"

"Just wondering, my friends happened to see you and they couldn't help but notice how cute you and Stella looked together, it almost sounded like a date, was it?" Lori asked.

"No, we were just talking about stuff," Lincoln confirmed. "Like we've said, we have-"

"Yeah, yeah, no interest in dating her," Lori said. "Tell me, is it really because she has no interest, or do you just keep her away?"

"Lori you already knew I had a crush on her when she first moved to Royal Woods, that's why you and the others talked me out of wearing a leather jacket and hair gel," Lincoln said.

"Yeah, I remember that," Lori said, chuckling a bit. "You were so silly looking, we couldn't help but call attention to it."

"Well I guess it's a good thing you did, that would have been a mistake, Stella probably would have just thought I was a creep...oddly enough I still tried the gel later, just to be sure it wouldn't work," Lincoln said.

"And of course it didn't, because you weren't being yourself," Lori said.

"Well I thought for a moment she didn't like the real me, then she told us she just wasn't interested, bummed me out but I'd rather keep her as a friend than lose her all together," Lincoln said.

"Well, if you ask me Lincoln, it was a waste on her end," Lori said. "You're a great guy, and I really think you need a girl that can appreciate that. Stella's alright, but if you felt you needed to change for her to like you, then she wouldn't have been worth it in the first place."

Lincoln was surprised by Lori's sudden friendly tone, he half expected her to be mad about something, "Wow, thanks Lori."

"Which is why Ronnie Anne was such a great fit for you," Lori said.

Lincoln gave Lori a dead panned stare, of course there had to be a reason. He missed the days when Lori was nice just for the sake of being nice, as oppose it either coming with a price or just a rare freebie.

"Lori, Ronnie Anne is also just a friend," Lincoln said.

"Yeah you say that, but you seemed so happy whenever you two were hanging out, and I think she really liked you too Lincoln," Lori said.

"I know she did, I thought I did too, but it just became awkward, plus she lives in Great Lakes so it's not like we can do long distance," Lincoln said.

"Yeah, it's difficult, but if you ever wanted it to work, then I know you can find a way to make it work," Lori said. "Just remember, you need a girl who truly understands you and isn't afraid to be herself, one who's confident in who she is, a strong girl."

"Right, point taken Lori," Lincoln said. "Is that all?"

"Just one more question," Lori said. "Since you and Stella were just 'talking', what was it about that you needed to meet with her alone at the park? I mean, if it wasn't a date then you were better off coming here."

"It's personal, we didn't want to take any chances that someone here would be snooping around," Lincoln said.

"Personal huh? It wouldn't have to do with any of us would it?" Lori asked.

Lincoln narrowed his eyes at his sister, "What are you getting at Lori?"

"Oh nothing, just a simple question," Lori said, backing off a bit. "I can see you don't want to discuss this, so I'll just drop it for now. Just remember little brother, things get around."

As Lori left his room, Lincoln started to grow worried, just the idea that Lori's friends could have heard anything would be bad. He really doesn't need these rumors spread around Royal Woods, at least the schools, things would just get even more chaotic and his family would be at the center of a lot of ridicule. Bad enough many of the local pool areas still have them banned because of how chaotic they tended to be, in public no less.

Meanwhile in the shared room of Lynn and Lucy, the jock had made her way inside, having finished brushing her teeth when she noticed her younger sister writing on a piece of paper.

"Hey Luce, so you actually gonna stay here for the night this time?" Lynn asked.

"Depends, are you gonna be tolerable?" Lucy asked, almost rhetorically. "Have you finally realized why I was unhappy in the first place?"

"Come on Luce, what's with you lately? Alright I get the first two times you wanted a break, maybe the first time we argued a lot, maybe the second time I had a problem with your bats and you had a problem with my mess, but I've fixed both of them!" Lynn said. "I mean what even happened this time? I never once said anything mean to you!"

"I'm just fixing a problem before it starts, besides you said yourself you still feel like we're bad roommates," Lucy said.

"That was two days ago, the first night, sure I understand you wanted a break, the second night, seemed to be pushing it but alright, one more day's good, now you're just not making sense," Lynn said.

"Like I said, I'm fixing a problem before it starts, I can feel a storm coming and I don't want to get caught up in your problems," Lucy said. "Lately you've been obsessed with the idea of Lincoln getting together with Stella, while I too support that you've been extremely pushy about it, quite frankly I wouldn't be surprised if Stella begins to resent you."

"Pardon me for wanting my brother to be happy," Lynn said. "At least I'm doing my part to help him."

"You want him to be happy? The same brother you called 'bad luck' just because you were being a sore loser?" Lucy asked.

Lynn groaned in frustration, "Why do you always bring that up like I'm the only one who did that, all of you called him back luck too, he even tricked us as well!"

"It was still hurtful of you to say that to a brother who only wished to support you at your game," Lucy said. "Lincoln didn't have to go, he could have said 'no'."

"Hey he almost did, until I made him change his mind," Lynn said, much to Lucy's ire.

"I wish I could say I found that surprising, but that would be completely untrue, quite frankly it just makes this worse," Lucy said. "What did you threaten him? Were you gonna beat him up? Take his comics? Take his games? Find some way to publicly shame him!?"

"What about you? What about all the bad things that you've done to Lincoln?" Lynn asked.

"What bad things!?" Lucy shouted, this argument starting to get the attention of the other siblings.

"Oh do you need a refresher? Because I think I have something that you might find interesting," Lynn calmly said.

"What? You're gonna find some way to bring up a past argument we've had?" Lucy asked. "Well what is is? The time he filmed us and embarrassed us? The time we were looking for that wad of cash? The chore strike? Go ahead, I've already forgiven Lincoln for his mistakes and he's forgiven mine, that's one thing I can't say about you, I'm sure he still has some resentment for all the things you've done!"

"I doubt that things are all peachy between you two," Lynn said, pulling something from under her sheets, holding it behind her back as she approached her gothic sister. During this she realized they not had an audience of nine other siblings.

"Lynn, what's going on in here?" Lori asked.

"Why are you two arguing?" Lana asked.

"Lucy, what's happening?" Lincoln asked.

"I'm glad you're all here, especially you Lincoln, because I found something that everyone's gonna find interesting," Lynn said, then from behind her back, she showed off the Princess Pony comic. "Ta-da!"

If Lucy wasn't already pale, one could see the color leaving her skin, her deepest secret having just been revealed by Lynn to the entirety of the other sisters.

Lincoln could tell this was gonna get bad for Lucy, he had to think of something quick. "Oh no, Lynn must have found my secret stash!" Lincoln put on an act in hopes to getting the attention of the other sisters. "Man, this is just embarrassing, I mean-"

"Save it Lincoln, I know it's not yours, there's no way you could have snuck this into our room," Lynn said.

"Wait, Lucy reads the Princess Pony comics?" Luan asked.

"Exactly, turns out it wasn't Lincoln after all, so there's hope for his masculinity yet," Lynn said.

"H-hey! My masculinity is just fine!" Lincoln insisted.

"Uh-huh, sure thing bro," Lynn said. "Honestly why were you even trying to defend Lucy, what's the deal? She blackmailing you or something?"

"Huh?" Lincoln asked. No? I mean, hey who's to say that it's really hers, I mean-"

"It's fine Lincoln," Lucy said. "You don't have to pretend anymore, it's pointless."

"Lucy, is that book yours?" Lori asked.

"Sigh...Yes, it's mine," Lucy confessed, getting a gasp from the other sisters.

"Wow, never would have guessed Lucy to be a fan of that stuff," Lana said.

"Yeah, she's the last person I expected, I thought she hated all that pretty stuff," Lola said.

"Even I need a break from the darkness," Lucy said. "There's only so much of it even I can take."

"So you admit it, you're the one who reads Princess Pony, meaning you were the one who clogged the toilet, meaning you made Lincoln take the fall for something he didn't do!" Lynn accused.

"What!? No I-" Lucy tried to explain herself but Lynn was getting too ahead.

"So Lincoln had to take the blame and the insults for something he didn't do, and he even missed his Ace Savvy convention, and he was so excited for it!" Lynn said. "That's just cold Luce."

"Lynn's right Lucy, that was pretty classless," Lola said.

"That convention meant a lot to Lincoln, all to cover up some dumb book obsession?" Lana added.

"Even I wouldn't push my faults onto someone else," Lisa said.

"Very disappointing Lucy, you're better than that," Lori added.

Lucy started trembling a bit, she could feel the watchful eyes of her sisters, all of them likely judging her not only for her secret hobby, but for making Lincoln take the fall for something she did. Guilt started to swell up in her, fear and insecurities rising up, she couldn't handle it, she just wanted to run, get as far away as possible.

"Hey! May I say something!?" Lincoln said, getting all the attention drawn to him. "Might as well just admit it, yes I took the blame for Lucy, but no, she didn't make me do it, she didn't blackmail or threaten me, in fact she was ready to confess. But I decided to take the blame for her instead."

"Why would you do that?" Luan asked. "You missed out on your convention because of that."

"Lori said it herself, whoever that book belonged to would be the laughing stock of the house, I couldn't let Lucy go through that," Lincoln said. "She may seem emotionless but she's really sensitive deep down, if she had to endure that teasing it would have been terrible, so I took the fall, I mean I can handle your teasing, you already laughed at my Ace Savvy costume, you poke fun at a lot of things I like, so it's not like it would be anything I haven't heard before." Lincoln brought Lucy in for a hug, hoping to console his little sister. "I don't regret anything, as Lucy's big brother, as a brother to all of you, I'm more than happy to do what I can to keep you happy, even if it's a huge burden on me."

It didn't take long for many of the girls to feel like trash, the fact that they intimidated one of their own sisters to the point where their only brother felt like he had to protect that sister from them made them rethink so many things. Surely the sisters teased each other, but they all assumed it was in good fun, they never imagined one of them being so frightened to endure something like that.

"Lucy, we're really sorry we made you feel that way," Luna said.

"We won't tease you about your book, you don't have to hide it from us, if you want to read it out in the open then go right on ahead," Luan said.

"Yeah, I'm worry too Luce, don't be afraid to be yourself," Lana said. "I mean you never once judged me for playing in the mud as often as I do."

"I suppose I could see the appeal, and it is refreshing to know that you can step out of your goth life and embrace the beauty in things," Lola said.

Leni picked Lucy up, hugging her tightly, "I'm so sorry baby sister, I would never think you're weird! Never in a million, gazillion years!"

"Uh, thanks Leni...your kind of crushing me," Lucy said, prompting Leni to place her down.

"Hehe, sorry Lucy," Leni said.

"Look I appreciate your apologies, but I'm not the only one who needs one," Lucy said, gesturing to Lincoln.

"Oh it's fine, I'm not holding any grudges," Lincoln reassured.

"You still deserve one anyway," Luna said. "More than that, you deserve a ton of props, taking the blame for something so embarrassing takes a lot of courage!"

"Yeah, I'm really proud of you for helping Lucy like that Lincoln," Luan said. "You really are a kindhearted brother."

"Not easy taking the blame for something else, is it?" Lola asked, having a similar experience.

"You're the man Lincoln," Lana praised. "The man with a plan."

Leni then picked Lincoln up for the same bone-crushing hug she gave to Lucy, "I still love you Linky! Even if you did read girly comics I would still love you!"

"Leni...need...air!" Lincoln said, struggling a bit.

"Sorry!" Leni said, placing her brother down. "Huh, I think I'm getting stronger...maybe it's the Kale Juice!"

"Uh-huh, sure thing Leni," Lisa said, rolling her eyes a bit. "As for you big brother, while I personally don't care much for any of the emotions our sisters are handing out, I do admit I respect your decision to stand up for your sister, and Lucy, I hope anything negative I may have said about your hobby wasn't taken to heart."

"I'm good," Lucy said. "Honestly I do feel better getting it off my chest, for the longest time I felt guilty about what I did to Lincoln."

"I made that choice Lucy, like I said, no regrets, I just want you to be happy with who you are," Lincoln said.

This got a in sync awe from the other sisters, aside from Lori, even if she did find this cute, and from Lynn, who seemed taken back from this sudden change of tone.

"So what, that's it?" Lynn asked. "So everyone forgives Lucy all of a sudden? Despite her lying and getting Lincoln in trouble for something he didn't do, all's good!?"

"Well yeah, what were we suppose to hold a grudge?" Luna asked.

"You all hold grudges against me for the stuff I do, how many of you still blame me for the bad luck thing!?" Lynn asked.

"Pretty sure that's a bit more extreme than what Lucy did," Luna said.

"She only did it because of all of you though! If I'm bad for calling my brother 'bad luck', then you're all bad for making Lucy feel like a freak!" Lynn shouted.

"Lynn, cool it," Lori warned. "Yes, you have a point, Lucy did something bad, something mom and dad WILL find out about. I don't care if it was Lincoln's idea, that doesn't change the fact that you still lied Lucy."

"Thank you Lori" Lynn said. "Finally someone with-"

"Lynn, shut it, you're in it deep too," Lori said. "Mom's already ticked at you for the stunts you pulled regarding Stella, when she finds out that you did this to Lucy she's gonna be even more ticked off."

"Maybe I can talk to mom about getting me a better roommate," Lucy said. "Honestly, I'm done with you Lynn."

"D-done with me!?" Lynn shouted.

"You tried to embarrass me, all because of a petty argument!" Lucy shouted.

"That you started! All over nothing!" Lynn said.

"I told you my reasons! Like I said, I'm done with you Lynn," Lucy said.

"Well, fine, hey you don't even have to move, I'll switch spots with Lincoln!" Lynn said. "Yeah, he can actually have a room now, see, me being a nice big sister and getting my little brother a room. From sleeping in the backyard to sleeping in my bed, I'm sure everything will be forgiven now!"

"Lynn, I already forgave you for the bad luck thing," Lincoln said.

"I know you did, my dear little brother," Lynn said. "But our sisters haven't, but don't worry, they'll soon realize why I'm the one truly your favorite sister of the bunch!"

Lynn then went inside her room and began tossing her stuff into a bag, packing things up to make the switch. Lincoln wasn't sure what to make of this, but for now he figures he'll go along with it.

"I'll get my stuff, we'll sort this out later when we're all level headed," Lincoln said, heading to his room.

Lori crossed her arms, sighing in annoyance, "How did things get to this? I swear this all started the moment Lincoln brought Stella home, if there was truly bad luck, I'd say Stella's the one cursed."

"Hey!" Luan shouted. "Do NOT say anything bad about Stella!"

"Yeah, she didn't do anything wrong, you're just being paranoid as normal," Luna said.

"Watch your tone before I turn both of you into human pretzels," Lori warned.

"Sis, you've been threatening us with that since we were tots, work on your creativity," Luna said, walking back to her room.

"Maybe lay off the pretzels Lori, I think you have enough salt as it is," Luan said, chuckling to herself. "Get it? But seriously, stop being a jerk."

Luan also made her way to her room, the other sisters following suit, leaving Lori to herself. Even Leni had gone to Luna and Luan's room, for the third night in a row. Lori could almost understand Lynn now, to have a sister that's being too unreasonable at the moment.

"It's hard being the oldest," Lori said, heading into her room.

The night passed, once again Lincoln sharing his room with his sister Lucy. She didn't seem to want to discuss the incident further, which Lincoln understood. It was highly awkward, all he cared about was making sure Lucy kept a positive mood, or as positive as she could be. He would need to have a serious talk with Lynn soon though.

The next day, Lincoln sought out Stella in the lunchroom, arriving at the table where all his friends were, though no Stella in sight just yet.

"Howdy there Lincoln, how'd yer date with Stella go?" Liam asked.

"It wasn't a date, she just wanted to talk to me about some stuff," Lincoln said.

"That's a relief," Rusty said, getting odd glares from the other four boys. "What? Don't we all still secretly like her?"

"Rusty give it a break, just accept Stella as a friend," Lincoln said.

"Yeah, besides at this point only Lincoln has a real shot at her," Liam said.

"Traitor," Rusty commented, much to Lincoln's annoyance.

"I'm not a traitor! Look I'm not trying to win over Stella, she just likes coming to my house, or she did, I think my sisters are finally starting to get on her nerves," Lincoln admitted. "So soon she might not want to even come over anymore."

"Oh I wouldn't say that," Clyde said.

"Huh? Why?" Lincoln asked.

"Because I don't hate your sisters," He heard Stella said. He turned around and saw Stella approaching the table. "They're a little nuts, but I don't think I have it in me to hate them, it wouldn't be very friendly of me to do so."

"What happened recently?" Rusty asked. "Did you get into a fight with his sister or something?"

"It wasn't Lynn right? She'd mess you up!" Zach said.

"No, I haven't, and I would prefer it stay that way," Stella said, a slight scowl on her face. "Look I don't want to get into it, I just want to have lunch with my friends."

"You're always welcome to," Lincoln said.

"Great," Stella said, sitting right next to Lincoln. "Also, if you don't mind, I'd like to stop by your house today, I want to talk to some of your sisters, namely Luan."

"Hey you're always welcome," Lincoln said as Rusty began to grit his teeth.

"Curse you Lincoln..." Rusty said out loud, thinking he said it in his head. It wasn't until he received a few angry stares that he realize his blunder. "Oops..."

Later on, as promised, Stella joined Lincoln on their walk home, passing the time through some small talk, including Lincoln talking about a crossover battle he's really into.

"I always thought the idea of Ace Savvy battling against Muscle Fish would be pretty epic, a superhero and a super fighter clashing fists, I mean it happened in a game once, but I'd love to see it in a movie," Lincoln said.

"Better than that, why don't they just team up?" Stella suggested. "They'd be quite an unstoppable force if they did."

Lincoln was about to argue his point, when he realized there was nothing to argue, because he liked Stella's idea better, "Actually, I'd like to see that movie instead. Hey maybe both, they start off as rivals, then work together for a common goal!"

"Why fight when you can be friends?" Stella said.

"Totally," Lincoln said, approaching his house. "There it is, now do you think you'll be-" Suddenly he was splashed with mud, knowing almost right away who it was. "Dang it Lana!"

"Sorry big bro, you know I love me some mud," Lana said, sitting in a mud pile. "Pretty cool huh? Made it myself."

"Didn't mom and dad tell you to stop doing that?" Lincoln asked, wiping his shirt.

"They just said not to make it too big and not to get mud on the house," Lana said. "Or track mud in the house...and that I have to take a bath right afterwards...lame."

"Well try not to get any mud on me," Lincoln said. "Now I need a new shirt."

"Hey all your shirts are the same anyway," Lana said. "Well all our clothes are, Lori never even changes her shorts." She finally realized that Stella was with Lincoln, "Hey, you're back! We missed you yesterday."

"Yeah, sorry I couldn't be here, by the time me and Lincoln finished talking, it was getting late and I had to go home," Stella said, partial truth.

"Well you can stay here as late as you want, we're always happy to have you," Lana said.

"Aw, you're so sweet," Stella said, bending over and rubbing Lana's head, getting a little mud on her hand. She wiped it on the grass and stood back up. "Well I should go inside, I gotta talk with Luan and some of your other sisters."

"Better hurry, she's about to leave for her gig," Lana said.

"Right, I'll hurry," Stella said, following Lincoln inside the house. Once inside, Lincoln could see Lynn on the couch with her friend Margo watching a baseball game, cheering loudly for their home team.

"They've got this in the bag!" Lynn said.

"Think they'll win the pennant?" Margo asked.

"Why wouldn't they? They're on fire!" Lynn said, then noticed that Lincoln came inside with Stella. "Hey! Linc! Stells! What's up!?"

Stella clenched her fist as she started muttering, "Stop calling me Stells..."

Lincoln comforted her with a hand on her shoulder, "Just ignore it, talking to her is like talking to a wall." He turned his attention to his sister, "Hey Lynn, I see you brought Margo over."

"Sup Lincoln? This your girlfriend?" Margo asked.

"Just a friend," Lincoln was quick to clarify.

Lynn leaned in to speak to her friend, "He's just really shy, soon they'll be all over each other."

"How adorable," Margo lightly teased.

"You know we can hear you," Lincoln said, somewhat deadpanned. "Little surprised mom and dad are letting you watch this after last night."

"I don't think Lori told them yet, but honestly, did I really do anything that bad? All I did was tell the sisters what Lucy did, if anything she'll be the one in trouble for lying about some stupid pony book," Lynn said.

Stella's eyes widened in shock, "Wait, what happened?"

"Oh it's nothing, I just finally exposed Lucy as the one who clogged the toilet, clearing my little brother's name like a good sister would," Lynn said.

Stella rolled her eyes in annoyance, "Wow, what a hero..."

"Ha, she gets it," Lynn said, not picking up on Stella's sarcasm, much to hers and Lincoln's annoyance.

"Anyway, we'd like to stay, but we need to talk to Luan quickly," Lincoln said.

"Well you should get going if then, I think Lori's driving her and Lisa soon, at least once Darcy gets dropped off here," Lynn said.

"Right, enjoy your game," Lincoln said, walking off with Stella. "Bye Margo."

"See ya lover boy," Margo said, getting some laughs out of her and Lynn while further annoying Lincoln and Stella.

The two had gone upstairs where Stella happened to notice something odd, "Hey, isn't that your baby sister Lily?"

Lincoln looked to see that his sister was walking around unsupervised, and without her diaper. "Ugh, dang it Lily!"

"Huh, she's quite the free spirit," Stella said, slightly chuckling at the situation.

"I just wish she'd grow out of it," Lincoln said, grabbing his naked sister by her hand. "Come on, let's find your diaper. I'll be right back Stella."

As Lincoln led Lily into her shared room with Lisa, Stella just waited near the stairs, finding it adorable that even Lily has her own unique quirk, though an awkward one too.

As she waited, she noticed Lucy passing by, writing in her journal. "Hi Lucy!"

This startled Lucy a bit, not expecting to see Stella, "Oh, hi Stella."

"Sorry, I didn't surprise you too badly did I?" Stella asked.

"It's fine, not used to being the one who gets spooked though, usually it's the other way around," Lucy said.

"I can imagine," Stella said, remembering her fight night in the loud home, having been spoked by the goth girl. "Hey, I heard about the Princess Pony thing, and I know it was an embarrassing secret for you, are you holding up alright?"

"I'm fine, Lincoln was there for me, as he always is," Lucy said.

"That's good to know, good to have at least one sibling that's actively sensitive to your feelings," Stella said. "Unless there were others too."

"It was only Lincoln, he's always the one sibling who understands me on a deep level," Lucy said. "He is the light of my darkness, to whom I am eternally grateful for."

"Aw, that's so sweet, and poetic, makes sense since you write poetry," Stella said.

"Just speaking from my heart, or at least where my heart would be if I had one," Lucy said.

Stella raised her eyebrow, "Uh...ok?" Stella figured this was a type of goth talk, she didn't want to get into it. "Well I'm happy this was resolved, you have the right to like what you like, and to always be yourself."

"Stella," Lucy said, getting the girl's full attention. "Be honest, you knew the whole time, didn't you?"

Stella's eyes widened in surprise, "Uh...well..."

"If you knew then it's fine, I take it Lincoln probably told you," Lucy said.

"That's my fault really," Stella said. "See I made him tell me, he even made me swear not to tell anyone else, or to laugh at you. Luna just brought it up and I just kept nagging him to tell me the full story. I hope you haven't lost your trust in him."

"No, I haven't, he didn't tell my sisters after all," Lucy said. "Besides I trust you as well, and you confirmed my thoughts that he told you in good faith. I do not hold it against you or my brother, how could I when he's done so much to help me? I couldn't even repay his kindness."

"He doesn't care about that, he just cares about you," Stella said.

"I know...that's why it hurts when I see him suffer, because each time it happens, it's just another chance blown for me to repay his kindness, I've even been...unfair to him on occasion," Lucy said.

"Like the bad luck thing?" Stella asked, getting a look of surprise from Lucy. "I made Lincoln tell me about that too, it's my way of helping him. The more he gets off his chest, the less stressed out he is and can focus on being a better brother, because the one thing he constantly tells me is how much he loves you and your sisters, even when you're all at odds with each other. I admire Lincoln for that, he has such a caring personality. I mean he has his faults, he seems to overreact to things and makes a big deal out of nothing sometimes, and he's been petty on occasion but the important thing to know is that everyone has something negative about them that they probably wish didn't exist."

"Even you?" Lucy asked.

Stella nodded, "Even me...honestly sometimes I feel like I try too hard to be nice to others and it gives them the wrong message, the first time I met Lincoln and his friends, I wasn't too vocal about what I wanted and gave them the impression that I had a crush on one of them. Maybe that's why I like hearing Lincoln express himself, so I can learn from the way he does it and express my feelings better. Maybe then I could have avoided indirectly causing Lincoln's friendship with the other guys to fall apart."

"Knowing Lincoln, I'm sure he did everything in his power to get you to notice him," Lucy said.

"Yeah, pretty much," Stella confirmed.

"I know you're not interested, but I really do wish you and Lincoln would date, I can say without a doubt that you're perfect for him, you balance each other out so well," Lucy said.

"Heh, I've gotten that before," Stella said. "I am a bit worried about the idea of having a boyfriend."

"Lincoln would make it easy, he's not demanding, he just wants a girl he give affection to," Lucy said. "He once sorta dated my friend Haiku, and she said he was really nice to be around because he was very relaxed."

Stella rubbed her head, "Well, maybe you have a point, but it's still kind of-"

Suddenly an explosion was heard in Lisa's room, to the surprise of Stella, though not so much Lucy.

"Are you out of your mind Lisa!?" They heard Lincoln shout.

"Hey Lily's alright, you shielded her with your body," They heard Lisa say. "Besides it was a minimal explosion, the worse that could have happened is if your arm was replaced by a tentacle of sorts."

"That's not the...ugh, forget it, if you're done then shouldn't you get ready for your classmate's party?" Lincoln asked.

"Oh, you're right, and Darcy will be here too!" Lisa said, then shoved Lincoln and Lily out of her room. "Give me two minutes." She shut the door behind her, much to Lincoln's annoyance.

"For a genius she does really dumb things sometimes," Lincoln said, picking up his baby sister and carrying her over to Stella and Lucy. "Hey..."

Stella could see that Lincoln's shirt was now charred, in addition to the mud. "Uh, I'm guessing you need to change."

"Tell me about it, mind watching Lily a moment?" Lincoln asked. "If she takes off her diaper, come get me immediately, it's a pain in the neck to put in back on her, especially if she randomly starts peeing."

That grossed Stella out a bit, but it's to be expected when it comes to infants, "Sure thing."

Lincoln handed Lily over to Stella and made his way towards his room, Luan having poked her head out of her own room. "Hey Lincoln, you having a blast over there?"

Lincoln shot Luan a dirty glare before shutting his door behind him, muttering about how frustrating some of his sisters could be.

Luan chuckled a bit, then realized that Stella was standing there holding her baby sister, "Oh, Stella, you're here..."

"Hi Luan, yeah I'm back, um I was hoping we could talk a moment," Stella said.

"Huh? Really?" Luan asked. "Sure...come on in."

"I can take Lily and wait for Lincoln, you can go talk to Stella," Lucy said, holding her arms out.

"Alright," Stella said, then turned her attention to Lily. "Be good for your sister now." Her response was a giggle from the infant, Stella giggling in return. "You're so adorable." She kissed Lily on her forehead and handed her over to Lucy. "Be right back."

"I can wait," Lucy said.

Stella walked to Luan's room, noticing the absence of another sister, "Looks like Luna isn't here."

"She went to her girlfriend's house to practice with their band, freeing me up to test out my party supplies and pranks," Luan said, gesturing to her props, some having just been used. "Though that explosion a moment ago startled me and made accidentally set some stuff off, which is fine, I got everything back in order, just in time to deliver another quippy pun too."

"Well at least you lightened the mood," Stella said.

"Yeah, that's what I love to do," Luan said, then turned to Stella. "So...little surprised to see you here."

"I've been here almost every day this week, is it really that surprising?" Stella asked.

"Kind of...I know Lincoln told you about the bad luck thing," Luan said.

"Oh good, I wasn't sure how to tell you that I found out, makes this a little less awkward," Stella said.

"Honestly, I thought for sure you would hate me after that," Luan admitted. "That actually worried me, I thought you wouldn't want to see me again."

"I'll admit, I'm very disappointed that happened, I mean you're Lincoln's older sister, so you have a responsibility to look out for him," Stella said. "But...I'm not gonna hold a grudge over that, Lincoln told me that he's not mad at you for what happened since he believes he's also at fault for tricking you and your sisters. Lincoln said he forgave you, and if he can do that, then I have no reason not to give you a fair chance."

"Yeah, I lucked out on that, no pun intended," Luna said. "I don't know what came over me, he was just really convincing and we all became paranoid, you'd be amazed how freaked out our family get over little things."

"Well Lincoln warned me many times about how chaotic your family was, so I guess it's not that surprising," Stella said. "Seriously though, I just wanted to get this off my chest, because there was no way I could have not told you, now that we know, we can go back to being friends...unless there's anything else you wanna tell me"

Luan twiddled her fingers, "Well..."

Stella took Luan's hands in hers, looking the comedian straight in the eyes, "If you ever have something you wanna tell me, I'm all ears. I won't judge you Luan, you're my friend and I care about you, for better or worse."

Luan started to feel relieved, she was so grateful Stella was understanding of something so major. This is the first of Lincoln's friends since Clyde that Luan felt a level of trust for, any other of Lincoln's friends would have shunned her, if it was Ronnie Anne, she was almost certain the tomboy would wreak vengeance on them for what they did to her friend/potential boyfriend.

"Maybe a few things, see-" Luan heard the doorbell ring. "Darcy must be here." She went to grab her things, "Sorry but I have to go, I have a gig to get to."

"Oh right, I was supposed to help you," Stella said.

"I'd offer to, but I didn't prepare for a second person, when I found out that Lincoln told you about the bad luck thing, I assumed you wouldn't want to come," Luan said.

"It's fine, maybe next time," Stella said.

"You bet'cha," Luan said.

"Well, I should head home then, I know Lincoln's joining you," Stella said.

"Hey you're more than welcome to stay with one of my other sisters," Luan said.

"No offense, but I don't think I want to be here without Lincoln if Lynn's here," Stella said.

"Right, she's gonna be a pain in the butt," Luan said. "She really wants you two to end up together."

"Um, can I be honest about something?" Stella asked.

"Um, sure," Luan said. "What's up?"

"I...I think..." Stella gulped and blurted out her thoughts. "I think I wanna ask Lincoln out on a date!"

Luan just stood there in surprise, then a big wide smile stretched onto her face, "R-really!?"

"I've been thinking about it the last couple of days, I had fun with him watching the movie, at the arcade, in the park, and just bonding with him lately, I think I want to gave him a chance, I want to see if we can truly be boyfriend and girlfriend..." Stella said. "So I just want to take the first small step."

"Oh Stella, I'm so happy to hear that!" Luan said, briefly hugging the girl. "Well asking Lincoln out now may not be the best idea, it might keep him distracted, but come to the park tomorrow." She grabbed her cellphone and texted her roommate, "I'll get Luna to help us, we'll get you ready."

"I really appreciate that," Stella said. "Truthfully, I'm a little nervous about doing this."

"You don't have to be, Lincoln might be surprised but I think he'll say 'yes', he's very easy going and the perfect date for a girl to have, you'll do fine," Luan said.

"Thanks, it really means a lot to me," Stella said.

"Good, alright let's head downstairs so you can say good-bye," Luan said, taking Stella with her.

At the front door, Lisa had already opened the door to let in her friend.

"Greetings Darcy," Lisa said.

"Hi Lisa! Ready for the party!?" Darcy asked.

"I suppose I am," Lisa answered. "Not one for trivial stuff like this, but I do quite enjoy the candied sweets they serve at these types of social gatherings."

"Where's your sister, the one that dresses like a clown?" Darcy asked.

"Right here," Luan said, putting on a clown wig. "I hope you're ready for the party." Luan then put on a clown nose, "Who _nose_ what surprises you'll find!"

Darcy giggled at the pun, "You're a funny clown!"

Lincoln had finally changed his clothes and went downstairs as well with Lucy, "Alright, Darcy's here, just gotta wait for Lori."

"Hi Lincoln, it's nice to see you," Darcy said, waving bashfully.

"You too Darcy," Lincoln said.

"Uh-oh, Stella's got competition!" Lynn said.

"Fight for your man girl!" Margo said.

Stella and Lincoln glared at the two jocks, Luan also looking slightly irritated. Thankfully the awkwardness didn't have a chance to grow when Lori came downstairs, "Alright, let's..." She then noticed Stella, "Oh you're here too."

"I was just going home," Stella said, then turned to Lincoln. "See you tomorrow."

"See you, sorry your visit was so short today," Lincoln said.

"It's fine, I got to talk to Luan," Stella said, then turned to the other sisters. "Bye everyone!" She then turned to Luan, Lisa and Darcy, "Have fun at the party!"

"We will," Darcy said.

"Let's go!" Lori ordered.

The kids wasted no time following Lori into Vanzilla, the older girl wasting no time backing the car out, though not without a slight glare to Stella in the process. Stella took some note of that, wondering what Lori could be so unhappy about. She can't think about that now, she had a date to get ready for, and that was the only thing on her mind. She passed by Lana, waving bye to the girl as she walked home, the big question lurking on her mind.

Tomorrow couldn't come soon enough for her, yet at the same time, it was something she was so nervous doing. It affected her on her walk home, when she went to bed that night, the following morning, even all day at school the following day. She could barely talk to Lincoln at lunch, knowing she was about to ask the most important question of her life later.

Perhaps an exaggeration, but to her it was still a big deal.

Finally, at the Loud House later that day, she had left school, telling Lincoln she would be at his house later but she had something to do first.

She walked over to the park where she met with Luna and Stella right at the front gate, the rocker girl looking particularly happy, but not compared to the wide smile of the comedian.

"Ready to do this girl?" Luna asked.

"Sort of," Stella said. "I mean it's hard to be ready for something like that."

"Yeah I get you," Luna said. "I got nervous the first time asking Sam out, Luan was a wreck when it came to Benny."

"But we'll guide you through this," Luan said. "Stuff like this requires deep breathing and relaxation techniques."

"Yeah, you're right, so you know any?" Stella asked.

"You kidding, we're the Louds, we don't do relaxed," Luna said, getting a surprise look from Stella.

"Wait, then why even mention it if I'm not gonna learn it?" Stella asked.

"You are, but not from me, from them," Luna said, gesturing to two other teens. "Meet my girlfriend, Sam Sharp."

"And my boyfriend Benny," Luan said.

The two made their way over to the young girl, who was very surprised to see them.

"So you're the one after little Linky's heart are you?" Sam asked.

"Uh...yeah, my name's Stella," the nervous girl introduced.

"Yeah, Luna told me about you, says you're a nice girl, and you have good taste in music," Sam said.

"Luan's told me about you as well," Benny said. "They way she talked, I almost thought she was gonna dump me for you."

Stella nervously chuckled, "I would never take someone's lover from them."

"I know, I'm just goofing," Benny said. "Alright, so you need help talking to Lincoln, right?"

"Yeah, I mean we're already friends but..." Stella couldn't really explain it well.

"I get it, don't worry, we'll help you," Sam said. "Lincoln's a nice boy, it won't be too hard."

"Come with us a moment, we'll give you tips on how to date a member of The Loud Family," Benny said, gesturing Stella over with Sam, leaving Luna and Luan to themselves.

"Think this will work?" Luan asked.

"Of course, they're perfect for each other," Luna said

"Yeah, they are," Luan said. "I really want Lincoln to be as happy as we are, and I'm glad he's gonna get that chance."

"Same, Lincoln makes the perfect boyfriend, he's got everything a girl needs in a guy, he's understanding, always thinks of others, very considerate, and he understands girls much better than most boys do, I mean he's not perfect but he's close," Luna said.

"Yeah, I just hope everything turns out alright," Luan said.

"Have confidence sis, and Don't Stop Believing, Stella's got this," Luna said. "Nothing's gonna go wrong."

"Yeah," Luan said, with a nervous chuckle, then looked aside. "I hope not."

Time passed, soon Luna and Luan started making their way home with Stella, having gotten a lot of prep and practice from Sam and Benny. The two teens had to go home but they wished Stella all the luck she needed.

"Ready for this, Stella?" Luna asked.

"I wish I could say I was, but...I'm still nervous," Stella said.

"It's alright to be a little nervous, just have faith in what Sam and Benny told you," Luan said, the group getting close to the house.

"Yeah, I'll try," Stella said, walking up the walkway.

"Don't worry too much," Luna said, opening the door and letting them inside, "Everything's gonna be just fine," Just like that, a potential wrench in their plans revealed itself. "Oh no..."

"It can't be..." Luan said.

"Who's she?" Stella asked.

Standing inside, talking with Lincoln was his previous female best friend, Ronnie Anne Santiago. Lincoln was the first to notice the girls, "Oh, Stella, you made it! I see you were with Luna and Luan, more girl talk?"

"Yeah..." Stella said, looking at Ronnie Anne. "Who is..."

"Stella, so good to see you," Lori said, making her way downstairs along with her boyfriend Bobby. Right behind them was Carlotta, who seemed to have a smug smile on her face.

Standing at the top of the stairs were the other sisters, who were keenly watching, worried about how this confrontation would go. Needless to say, none of them knew about Bobby coming over with his cousin, his sister and some other random girl. Lynn seemed the most worried, her hopes of seeing Stella hook up with her brother now had a bump in that road.

"Lori, what's going on?" Luna asked.

"Oh, didn't I tell you, Bobby's here for the weekend, a little something we planned since Lincoln couldn't come to Great Lakes last week," Lori said.

"Yeah, little bro missed my baby sister, so we came up with a better compromise," Bobby said.

"Sure did!" Sid said, making her way out the kitchen with a tray of snacks. "Boy do Bobby and Lori have plans for us this weekend."

Luna gestured to Sid, "Who's she?"

"That's my best friend SId," Ronnie Anne said, "Sid, meet Luna and Luan."

"The rock star and comedian right? Sweet!" Sid said, then turned to Stella. "What about her?"

"Yeah Lincoln, introduce us," Ronnie Anne said.

"Right, Stella, meet Lori's boyfriend Bobby," Lincoln said, gesturing to the teen boy, who offered a friendly wave. "His cousin Carlotta." The teen girl did a smaller and slightly snobbish wave. "Sid, who I just met for the first time myself." Sid waved while flashing a wide toothy grin, "And my old friend, Ronnie Anne Santiago." Lincoln turned to his city friend, "Ronnie Anne, everyone, meet my new best friend, Stella."

"Hello, Stella, nice to meet you," Ronnie Anne said, barely smiling at the girl.

"Yeah...hi," Stella said, awkwardly waving.

The moment that Luna, Luan and potentially a few other sisters worried about the most was finally happening. Ronnie Anne was back, and this could either go really well for Stella, or it could end pretty badly.


	9. Final Plans

Just a few minutes before Stella had arrived with Luan and Luna, Lincoln was setting up some games for his friend to play when she finally came over. He had been really enjoying Stella's company these last few days, they've grown really close as friends now.

"Yo Stinkin'!" Lynn said, getting her brother's attention. "I'm bored, wanna go for a run?"

"Why do you need me to do that?" Lincoln asked.

"Because seeing you struggle to run is hilarious," Lynn said. "Besides I wanna make sure you're in perfect physical shape too, maybe it will keep Stella's interest."

"Lynn..." Lincoln was gonna argue, but he was tired of having to constantly explain himself, so he decided to question her. "Why are you so interested in me and Stella dating?"

"Duh, cause I wanna see my baby brother with a cute girl by his side," Lynn said. "Come on, you know you love the idea."

"Well yeah, but-" Lincoln's explanation was interrupted when he heard a knock on the door. "Huh, that might be Stella."

"She just loves coming over," Lynn said with a confident grin.

Lincoln groaned in annoyance before walking over to open up the door. He had to brace himself for the worst, knowing just how irritating Stella found Lynn to be. However when he opened the door, he encountered something completely unexpected.

Standing on the other side was his best friend from the city, "Ronnie Anne!?"

This got Lynn's attention as she rushed to the door, seeing the former Royal Woods girl along with her brother, her cousin and some other girl.

"Sup Lame-O, it's been a while," Ronnie Anne greeted, then noticed his sister. "Hey Lynn, how are the athletics going?"

"Fine..." Lynn said, trying to process this. "Little surprised to see you here though, I mean-"

"Bobby! You made it! Fast too!" Lori said, making her way downstairs to greet her boyfriend.

"Hey babe, yeah we got lucky on the traffic," Bobby said, then turned to Lincoln. "Little bro! What's the haps? I heard you made a nice new lady friend, she pretty?"

Carlotta nudged Bobby hard for that, much to his annoyance. She gestured to Ronnie Anne, hoping he got the point, which he somewhat did, though he still saw no harm in his question.

"I did, her name's Stella, she was new to Royal Woods, so I made her feel welcomed," Lincoln said.

"Well, aren't you the little gentleman?" Carlotta said, bending down. "Hi Linky, remember me?"

"Of course, hard to forget a pretty face," Lincoln said, getting a giggle from Carlotta.

"You're too nice, such a sweetheart of a boy, you don't see that in a lot of guys, not where I'm from at least," Carlotta said. "Yeah, he's quite a keeper."

Carlotta hoped Ronnie Anne got that hint, it just made the girl smirk deviously, "Hey if you like Lincoln that much, then why don't you two get hitched then?"

"Oh I wouldn't move in on another girls' boy," Carlotta said, shifting her eyebrows up and down.

"Yeah you would, don't you and Kinsey girl constantly rival on who dates the cutest guy?" Ronnie Anne asked.

"Cuz, that's big girl stuff, you'll understand it better when you get older," Carlotta said, much to the younger girl's annoyance."

Wow, that teenage drama, gotta love it" Sid said, getting Lincoln's attention.

"I don't think I've seen you before, pretty sure I know all the Santiago and Casagrande siblings," Lincoln said.

"Oh that's my best friend, her name's Sid," Ronnie Anne introduced.

"Yup, I'm Sid Chang, I moved into Great Lakes a couple weeks back, me and Ronnie Anne hit it off instantly!" Sid said, moving in closer to Lincoln. "So, you're Lincoln Loud, Ronnie Anne's told me a lot about you!"

"Uh, yeah, nice to see you too, I've also heard about you, it's nice to actually meet you," Lincoln said.

"We're all happy to meet you, any friend of Ronnie Anne is a friend to us all," Lori said. "After all, we Loud sisters view Ronnie Anne in such high regard."

"Huh? Since when? Aside from you the other sisters barely even acknowledged me," Ronnie Anne said.

Lori laughed nervously, "Don't be silly, all our sisters like you, your family and our family are just so close." Lori turned to Lincoln, "Isn't that right little bro?"

"Uh, yeah I guess, I mean it's usually me and you that go to visit them though," Lincoln said.

"Honestly I don't even know the names of Bobby's cousins," Lynn bluntly admitted, much to Carlotta's annoyance.

"Lynn, maybe you should go upstairs while Lincoln and Ronnie Anne catch up," Lori said, then turned to Bobby and his company. "Why don't you all come in and make yourselves comfortable."

"Don't gotta tell me twice," Sid said, walking in first with Ronnie Anne right after, followed by the two teens. "Wow what a nice place you got here."

"We appreciate that," Lori said. "Now, Sid was it? Why don't you go into the kitchen and pull out a few snacks." Lori turned to Bobby and Carlotta, "Let's go upstairs a second and talk over some plans."

"Sure thing Babe," Bobby said, then turned to Ronnie Anne. "See you in a bit Nini."

Lori led the teenagers upstairs, Lynn looking quite suspicious of Lori's motives. As Lori had gone upstairs and into her room, the arrival of Bobby had finally caught the attention of every sister still in the house.

"Is that Bobby?" Lola asked.

"Lori didn't say anything about Bobby coming over," Lana said.

"Quite interesting, he seems to have his cousin with him," Lisa said.

From inside Lori's room, Leni's voice could be heard, "Oh, Bobby! You're here! What brings you...hey!" Lori had then pushed Leni out of their shared room. "Lori!"

"Sorry, we need to talk in private," Lori said, closing the door in front of Leni.

"What's going on? Why is Bobby here with his cousin?" Lola asked.

"She's not the only one who came," Lynn said, gesturing downstairs. The sisters looked over to see Ronnie Anne talking with Lincoln.

"Well that's to be expected, no real surprise," Lisa said.

"So none of you knew Bobby was coming right?" Lynn asked, getting a murmur of 'no's', confirming Lynn's suspicions. "Figures, why would Lori hide the fact that Bobby was coming, and with Ronnie Anne, just when Lincoln was getting friendly with Stella?"

"You don't think she's trying to set Lincoln up with Ronnie Anne do you?" Leni asked.

"It's Lori, of course she is," Lynn said, looking down the steps at her brother talking with his friend. "I'm willing to bet that she set this up the moment she saw how well Lincoln and Stella got along, she never let go of her desire for our brother to hook up with her boyfriend's little sister, just to bring their families closer together," Lynn said.

"But, what's going to happen to Stella then?" Leni wondered.

"We gotta keep an eye out for her, make sure Lori doesn't do anything too bad, or scare her off at least," Lynn said.

"For the first time in a few days, I actually agree with Lynn," Lucy said.

"Aw, thanks Luce, so does this mean you forgive me?" Lynn asked.

"Don't get ahead of yourself," Lucy warned.

Downstairs, Lincoln and Ronnie Anne were talking about this current situation. "Lori didn't tell me you were coming, if I knew I would have prepared better."

"Hey you look fine to me, truthfully Bobby didn't really say much until yesterday, I mean he told me a few days ago not to make any plans this weekend, now I know why," Ronnie Anne said. "He said Lori set this up."

"Was this because I didn't come last week? Like were you that upset or something?" Lincoln asked.

"I was bummed but not upset, I mean it's like three hours in a car, unless you sped over here like Bobby did, plus I don't blame you for wanting to duck out on physical labor, that and you already made plans," Ronnie Anne said.

"Well what did Lori have planned for us anyway?" Lincoln asked.

Before Ronnie Anne could answer, that's when the door opened, that's when Luna, Luan and Stella made their way into the house, that's when things got really complicated and awkward.

Stella had just found a rival neither girl really expected to have.

Everything could have gone better, it could have been perfect for Stella. A chance to finally confess how she felt about Lincoln, or at least confirm if whether those feelings were real or not.

Now Ronnie Anne is here, she can't tell what the other girl is thinking at the moment at all, wondering if she's gonna be friendly, of wondering if there should be any worry. There was quite a bit of tension, between both Stella and Ronnie Anne having not said anything, The Loud sisters aside from Lori worrying something was about to go down, Lori and Carlotta hoping that there won't be anything jeopardizing their plans, Bobby not sure why things were suddenly quiet and even Lincoln was wondering what both girls were thinking, hoping neither one was getting any wrong idea.

Then were was Sid, who was loudly slurping a glass of fruit punch, unaware of any tension at all, just happily draining the cup until the last drop. Literally the last drop as even when the drink finished, she would not stop slurping, making a lot of noise that irritated everyone nearby. Once she noticed all the annoyed stares, she slowly put the cup down on the table and crept away back into the kitchen.

"So...Ronnie Anne," Stella said, trying to restart a conversation. "You came all the way from the city, right?"

"Yeah, just got here a few minutes ago," Ronnie Anne answered.

"Right, so you're here to see Lincoln?" Stella asked.

"Of course, that and my brother wanted to see his girlfriend, who happens to be Lincoln's older sister," Ronnie Anne said.

"Yes, I'm aware, Lincoln's told me about their relationship," Stella said. "Well, um, how long are you here for?"

Ronnie Anne turned to Bobby, "How long are we staying? You never really explained that."

"Oh, well we're renting a hotel room, my mom's actually on her way to get our room, so we're gonna be staying the whole weekend," Bobby said.

"One big weekend for me and Bobby to get reacquainted, and for Lincoln to spend time with his female best friend," Lori said.

"Uh...female best friend?" Ronnie Anne said. "Oddly specific way to word it."

"Well I would say 'best friend', but that would be unfair to Clyde too," Lori said.

"And to Stella," Luan pointed out. "Because, you know, she's Lincoln's best friend too."

"Yeah, Lincoln and Stella have gotten much closer this past week," Luna said.

"Oh, I hope McBride isn't too jealous then," Ronnie Anne teased. "I mean, to feel like you've been replaced, man that's gotta totally suck."

"Yes, it would, wouldn't it?" Lori said. "Well we have a big weekend to plan, Lincoln I'm sure you want to spend a little more time with Ronnie Anne, I mean you haven't seen her in quite a while, we'll give you total privacy for that."

"Uh, what about Stella?" Luna asked. "She came by to see Lincoln."

"Yeah, she had something she wanted to ask him," Luan said.

"Oh, really now?" Lori said, turning to Stella. "And what would that be?"

Stella looked nervous, this isn't how she imagined her day doing, nor how she wanted to confess to Lincoln.

"You know, it's really nothing, maybe now's not a good time to talk," Stella said. "I can catch up with Lincoln a little later."

"You can do it tomorrow," Bobby said. "We're taking Lincoln, Ronnie Anne and Sid to Dairy Land, you should come too!"

"Uh, Bobby, mind rethinking that?" Carlotta whispered. "Remember, bonding experience..."

"Oh right, bonding," Bobby said, then turned back to Lincoln. "You can invite the Clydesdale too, I'm sure he'd love to join us."

Before Carlotta or Lori could oppose, Luna was quick to speak up, "That's a wonderful idea, thanks for thinking about Stella's inclusion Bobby."

"Hey, no trouble, anything for little bro's friends," Bobby said, then focused back on Stella. "Would you want to come?"

"Uh...yeah, I would, if it won't be a bother," Stella said.

This time Luan was quick to speak up, "Of course it won't, we're all friends, in fact maybe all of us can go."

"Now girls, you know not all of us like Dairy Land, remember?" Lori asked.

"Yeah, I remember you being one of those girls, but you seem to be ok with it now," Luna said. "So I'm sure the others won't mind."

"We won't mind, I'm sure it will totes be fun!" Leni said from upstairs.

"Nothing would make me happier," Lucy said, unironically monotone.

"Daiwy Lan!" Lily added.

The rest of the sisters turned to Lola, who seemed on the fence about it. She didn't hate Amusement Parks but something about Dairy Land was a bit off putting, she did not want end up potentially puking all over the park.

"Come on Lols, it's for Stella," Lana said.

"I know...I'm just trying to think if I really like her that much," Lola said.

"Who's more likely to judge you, Stella, or Ronnie Anne?" Lana added.

Lola sighed in defeat, "Alright fine." She called down to the others, "Count me in too!"

"And now all the sisters are on board with the Dairy Land idea, time to go of the rails on the Crazy Train," Luna said.

"That's right, we're all on the same Train of Thought!" Luan said, chuckling a bit.

"I get it!" Sid said from the kitchen.

"Wow, didn't even have to ask that time," Luan said.

"Well then, now that we have our plans settled, I'm sure Lincoln and Ronnie Anne would like to catch up," Lori said.

"Fine, Stella can just hang with me and Luan in our room," Luna said. "After all, she's our friend too."

Lori sighed in annoyance, "Fine, whatever you want girls."

Luna turned to Stella, "Come on, let's head upstairs, leave the two 'best friends' alone for a while."

Stella nodded and followed Luna upstairs alongside Luan, the two sisters giving a dirty look to their eldest sister in the process.

"Boy did that seem kind of awkward, or was it just me?" Sid wondered, stepping out the kitchen and standing between Lincoln and Ronnie Anne, placing her arm around them both. "So, what should we do now?"

"Um, Sid honey," Lori said. "Maybe-"

"Oh! Is that the Muscle Fish game!?" Sid shouted, running to the console that Lincoln owned. "Sweet! Anyone wanna play a few rounds? I bet I could totally stomp on all of you!"

"I highly doubt that," Lincoln said, showing a snippet of his ego. "I'm kind of a master at this game."

"Oh yeah, prove it then!" Sid said. "You and me, best out of three! Or five! Or seven! Or-"

"Sid!" Lori said, getting the hyper girl's attention. "I know you're excited, you're someplace new and you want to make new friends, but I really think Lincoln and Ronnie Anne should be alone for a bit."

"Why are you so in favor about me and Ronnie Anne being alone together?" Lincoln asked. "I mean, yeah I did miss her company but it's not like we never talk. I don't see why Sid or Stella for that matter can't be down here with me and Ronnie Anne."

"No, she's right," Sid said, remembering the point of all this. "You two should catch up, it's much better when you're in the same room rather than through a screen."

"Why don't you go upstairs and see if any of my sisters want you to keep them company," Lori said. "Two of my sisters are twins that are just adorable."

"Yeah, they're about the same age as your sister Adelaide," Bobby said. "Just as cute too, one of them is a Princess Pageant Girl, the other's a girl who likes getting rough, dirty and loves animals."

"So the worse little sister tropes, times two!?" Sid asked. "I'm not too sure about that."

"I don't blame you, Lola could be a handful if you're not used to sassiness," Lincoln said. "And Lana could get you all muddy, or her frogs can jump on you, or her snake can wrap itself around you."

Sid gulped nervously, sweating up a storm, "I don't think I'm comfortable with this!"

"Now Sid-" Lori was saying, but Lincoln had interjected.

"I have an idea," Lincoln said. He picked up some walkie-talkies he had stored nearby and handed one to Sid. "If my sisters give you trouble, just call me and I'll help you out. You don't even have to be obvious, you can...do a bird call."

"I like how you think," Sid began. "But I have a really bad experience with bird calls."

"Well I'll keep my walkie talkie close, do whatever makes you comfortable," Lincoln said.

"Aw, thanks Lincoln, wow you are as cool as Ronnie Anne said you are," Sid stated, getting an annoyed blush from Ronnie Anne.

"Just go upstairs Sid," Ronnie Anne said, keeping her face away from everyone's sight.

"Alrighty then," Sid said, tucking the walkie away and heading upstairs with Lori, Carlotta and Bobby following shortly behind.

"Your friend seems really nice," Lincoln said, turning back to Ronnie Anne. "So...it's been a while since we've seen each other face to face."

"Hasn't been that long, maybe a month or so," Ronnie Anne said.

"Even so, sometimes it's weird knowing you're so far away, doesn't seem that long ago you were not even ten minutes from my house," Lincoln said.

"Yeah, things really change, it used to be as simple as going to Gus's place or the nearby park," Ronnie Anne said. "Though if you think it's bad for us, imagine how it is for Lori and Bobby."

"I know all too well how bad it is for Lori," Lincoln said. "I mean Bobby always seems to make time to come down every once in a while to see Lori, which is great, it really makes her happy."

"Yeah, he comes back pretty relaxed himself, if I could I'd join him more, but it would be easier for him to spend time with Lori if he didn't also have to keep an eye on me, not that I need it but he tends to worry," Ronnie Anne said. "He even saw Luan's play, said she was really good."

"Yeah, she ended up dating her co-star too," Lincoln said.

"So it is true, Luan got a boyfriend," Ronnie Anne said. "What about your other sisters, they got dates?"

"Luna has a girlfriend, her bandmate Sam," Lincoln said. "Leni, I think she's dating someone, I'm not sure if they made it official. Everyone else though, they're single."

"Including you?" Ronnie Anne asked.

Lincoln nervously chuckled, "Yeah, including me."

"So, that girl really isn't your girlfriend?" Ronnie Anne asked.

Lincoln groaned in annoyance, "I swear if I had a nickel for every time someone asked me...Stella and I are just friends, that's all."

"Sounds like your sisters have been bugging you about her," Ronnie Anne said.

"They do that every time I talk to a girl," Lincoln said. "It's really a pain in the neck."

"Families are like that, I've gotten that myself," Ronnie Anne said. "Though it sounds like that girl's been around more lately."

"Yeah, we've been getting closer as friends, I think she's finally feeling at home in Royal Woods," Lincoln said.

"Oh right, you said that she moved here," Ronnie Anne said. "I can relate, I mean I was a new girl myself, it wasn't very easy adjusting to life in Great Lakes. But I think I'm finally feeling at home, my family went through a lot of trouble to make sure of that."

"That's great to hear, not surprising, your family's really nice," Lincoln said. "So, what's the story with your friend Sid? I don't think I know much about her."

"She was a new girl herself, so that's one thing we had already had in common," Ronnie Anne said. "From there we really hit it off, I mean we both like skateboarding, even if she's not that great. We both love that K-Pop group Twelve is Midnight, we both love video games, she's really fun to be around, she's become to me what McBride is to you."

"Well she seems to have quite the personality, and I'm happy you have a best friend of your own out there," Lincoln said. "Hey what about Sameer, Casey and Nikki? You still hang out with them?"

"Sometimes, feels like it's been mostly me and Sid lately," Ronnie Anne said. "So what else have you been up to lately?"

As Lincoln and Ronnie Anne continued to chat downstairs, upstairs Lori and led Bobby and Carlotta into her room, then turned her attention to Sid. "The twins are over on the other side of this hall, to the left of Lincoln's room." Lori pointed in the direction of the two rooms, "Lincoln's room is right in there, across is the room shared by my two youngest siblings, my baby sister Lily and our scientist wannabe sister Lisa. If she asks you to help her with a science problem, do NOT agree to do so, the twins will back you up but try not to trust her too much."

"And you're sure it's safe up here?" Sid asked.

"You have my brother's walkie-talkie, now I'm not gonna lie, my sisters are quite the energetic bunch, so if you do feel overwhelmed don't hesitate to come to me or to call my brother," Lori said, then leaned down to whisper something. "Also if you happened to overhear anything concerning how my sisters feel about Ronnie Anne coming by, let me know."

Sid nodded her head, "Sure thing chief."

Lori entered her room, closing the door behind her as Sid began to make her way towards the twins' room. However, before getting distance, she heard some talking in the shared room of Luna and Luan.

"Maybe this wasn't such a good idea," she heard Stella said.

"Don't give up yet girl, it still ain't over," Luna said.

Sid learned her ear against the door, trying to listen in on the conversation.

"I was suppose to get a date with Lincoln, gonna be hard to ask him with his friend here, a friend that's a girl," Stella said.

"They're just friends, it's no different than Clyde being here," Luna said.

"But Lincoln said he and Ronnie Anne used to be a thing, or they thought they were a thing," Stella said.

"That was mostly us getting in Lincoln's head," Luan said. "If we hadn't said anything, he probably would have never considered the idea."

"Yeah, not sure if you know, but she used to bully him, we told him it's her way of telling him she has a crush on him," Luna said.

"Yeah he told me about that, he mentioned getting a punched in the eye," Stella said.

"We felt terrible about that, probably shouldn't have jumped to conclusions," Luna said.

"Yeah, some of us were like that when we were young," Luan said. "Lynn's still like that in a way, she has a really rough way of showing affection herself."

"Yeah, I noticed," Stella said, looking rather annoyed.

"I'll give you some props Stella, the fact that you can put up with Lynn is impressive," Luna said.

"I only do it because for Lincoln's sake, he is her sister after all, and he loves her very much," Stella's expression softened, thinking of the boy. "It's funny, Lincoln's told me so much about you girls, all the good and the bad, and...don't get me wrong, I really like the two of you, but hear a lot of things he said, between you calling bad luck and the sister fight protocol, the fact that he still finds it in him to love you girls so deeply, he just seems like such an amazing guy, the type of person to look past someone's flaws and try to find their good sides."

"You'd be amazed how much little bro puts up with, even on our worst days," Luna said. "I mean, little dude can try to at least stand up for himself more, maybe it's scary because he thinks it's ten on one, but it's not like all of us see eye to eye all the time."

"Even if we're all against him one moment, you'd be amazed how quickly we can turn on each other," Luan said.

"That's...not reassuring to hear," Stella said.

"You'd understand better if you have siblings," Luna said. "I mean we still love each other, but sometimes you gotta be able to fend for yourself, our house is a jungle after all."

"Um, I guess I understand," Stella said. "I can't really judge, I'm still getting to know you and I'm still getting used to how things work in your house, but as long as it's harmless."

"Just don't come here on April Fool's Day," Luna said, much to Luan's annoyance.

"Why does everyone keep telling me that?" Stella asked.

"I'll tell you later," Luan said. "You might not like what you hear."

"Luan, we're friends now, if you have something to tell me, I'll be there to listen, and not judge," Stella said. "I don't like being judged, so I wouldn't judge another."

"This is why we like you, and why we're Never Gonna Give You Up," Luna said. "We'll figure this out, and soon you and little bro will have the date of a lifetime."

Sid listened in carefully, "Date of a lifetime huh? We'll see about-"

"Hey, what are you doing!?" Lynn asked, starling Sid.

"Oh, hello, I'm Sid, Ronnie Anne's friend!" Sid introduced.

"Pretty sure I asked what you're doing, now who you are," Lynn said, looking like she was ready to get aggressive.

"Um...I was on my way to see the Twins, and it looks like this isn't their room," Sid said, stepping away. "So I'm gonna check another room!"

Sid rushed off, leaving Lynn slightly suspicious of the girl. "She's up to something, if she messes things up for my baby bro, there's gonna be hell to pay." She then heard some talking in the room in front of her, so she listened in herself.

"If we're gonna pull this off, we'll need all the help we can get," Luna said. "First we'll round up all the sisters, except Lori obviously, then find Lincoln's friends. We also gotta clue in Sam and Benny, they'll know what to do as well."

"What will we do about Lori, Bobby and Carlotta?" Luan asked. "Oh, and that Sid girl too?"

"Bobby I'm not too worried about," Luna said. "We can handle Carlotta, we'll get Leni. As for Sid, I doubt there's much she can do, unless she's the sneaky type, but we'll get the sisters to throw her off. The only real problem is Lori."

"Sounds like you're having trouble," Lynn said, standing in the room with a smug grin on her face. "Sup?"

"Hey who let you in here!?" Luan asked.

"I overheard you talking," Lynn said. "Oh, B-T-Dubs, so did that Sid girl."

"Oh great, she's probably gonna tell Lori," Luna said. "That might give us a disadvantage."

"Don't worry, I saw Lucy crawl into the vents just a second ago, overheard her saying something about going to Lori's room," Lynn said.

In the vents above Lori's room, Lucy could be seen looking down at the teenagers.

"Dairy Land's gonna be great, The Tunnel of Love is gonna get quite romantic, if you know what I mean," Lori said, winking at Carlotta.

"Yeah, I get you girl," Carlotta said, winking back.

"Uh...do you girls have something in your eyes?" Bobby asked.

"Bobby, mind getting us a glass of milk, as a reward you can help yourself to some cookies we have downstairs," Lori said.

"Oh sweet, be back in a flash," Bobby said, making his way out the room.

"Alright, so let's start mapping this out," Carlotta said as the two teens began planning their matchmaking, Lucy angrily snarling from the vents.

"Play with Lincoln's heart will you?" Lucy said. "Rest easy brother, for soon I can finally repay your kindness."

Back at the room of Luna and Luan, the two teens are glaring at the young jock, still ticked she let herself into their room.

"Anyway, what do you want sis?" Luna asked. "We're busy making plans!"

"Yeah, I know, I want in," Lynn said.

"Of course you do," Luan said, deadpanned in expression.

"Hey I've been the one actively pushing for those two to get together, they're perfect for each other," Lynn said. "I mean how many girls are gonna share his geeky interests?"

"Lots of girls like comics and video games you know," Stella said. "It's not rare."

"Yeah, suppose Margo ended up liking that stuff, what you gonna start thinking she's weird?" Luna asked.

"Maybe a little," Lynn said, getting a glare from her friends. "Alright, fine, I'll lay off."

"There's nothing wrong with not sharing interests with your brother, just try to accept that he likes different things than you do," Stella said.

"Yeah, good luck explaining that to this family," Luna said.

"Wow, way to make Lincoln feel singled out," Lynn said, further annoying Luna.

"That wasn't a crack at Lincoln! How many times have you complained about my music!?" Luna asked.

"Hey, I go to your stupid concerts!" Lynn shouted.

"Wha-" Luna couldn't believe how her own sister just disrespected her concerts. Actually, she could believe it. "Well now you know how I feel at your boring baseball games!"

"Did you just call my games 'boring'!?" Lynn angrily shouted.

"Alright that's enough! We're losing track of why we're here!" Luan said, getting the sisters to settle down, turning to her rocker sister first. "Luna, I know you don't fully trust Lynn's judgement, but she is on our side here, maybe we can try to compromise."

Luna turned away in slight annoyance, still ticked off about Lynn's attitude. "We'll see."

"And Lynn," Luan turned to her jock sister. "If you're gonna help us, you gotta try to work with us and listen to our ideas."

"Sure, as long as they're not too stupid," Lynn bluntly stated.

"Lynn!" Luan shouted.

"Ok, fine," Lynn said, rolling her eyes in annoyance. "I'll run my plays with you, feel better?"

"That's all we ask," Luan said. "Question is, aside from Lucy, what other sisters can we get to help us?"

"I'm pretty sure the twins would help, they like Stella after all," Lynn said.

"Aw, I like them too," Stella said.

"Leni might also help," Lynn said. "Uh, where is she though? Pretty sure she's not in Lori's room."

At the twins' room, Lola is seen holding a tea pot, ready to pour it out. "More tea for my lovely guests?"

"Uh-huh," Lana said, pretty bored.

"Sure thing..." Sid said, equally bored.

"Oh! I'd love some!" Leni said, holding out her cup.

"Of course dearie," Lola said, pouring the fake tea into each cup.

While Lana and Sid couldn't care less, Leni seemed pretty excited, "Thanks Lola!" She took a sip and started spitting it out while fanning her tongue. "Ah! Hot! Hot!"

"Is that girl alright?" Sid asked Lana.

"It's fine, this is normal for Leni," Lana said, somewhat deadpanned.

To Sid's surprise, and Lana's expectations, Leni actually held out her cup again to Lola, "More tea please."

Even Lola found that odd, but obligated her request, only for a similar scenario to happen again.

Back with Lynn, she simply shrugged it off, "I'm sure Leni's fine where she is, now that just leaves Lisa."

"You think Lisa could be of any help?" Luan asked. "After all, she can be a bit...unaware of most human emotions."

"Lisa may be emotionless half the time, but even she's capable of having a crush, and even she likes the idea of Lincoln having a date," Lynn said. "She may be a nerd, but she's still a girl, and she has that woman's instinct."

"Eh, good point I guess," Luna said. "That just leaves Lincoln's friends and some of our friends."

"I can ask Margo for help, she knows game planning almost as well as me," Lynn said.

"Fine, as long as she doesn't go overboard either," Luna said.

"Hey, Margo's very chill just so you know," Lynn said. "Maybe I can even ask Polly for help."

"You mean that girl you tried setting Lincoln up with?" Luna asked.

"Yeah, maybe you can also call that Tabby girl," Lynns said. "And Luan can call tht Giggles girl, then we ask Lucy to call in Haiku, then Lisa can ask Darcy, and-"

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves, you wanna call Margo and Polly over, that's fine but we don't need that many friends, otherwise we'll start to lose some control," Luna said. "I'll just stick with Sam for now and Luan can stick with Benny."

"Fine by me," Lynn said, then turned to Stella. "That also leaves you, remember this plan will only go well if you confess to Lincoln at the right moment, so try not to wuss out."

"Wow, great motivation," Stella sarcastically said.

"Thanks," Lynn said, once again oblivious to the sarcasm. "Before we plan, let's try to get the other sisters on board, but the main thing is keeping Stella close to Lincoln whenever possible, and making sure he's almost never alone with Ronnie Anne."

"Isn't he downstairs alone with her right now?" Luna asked.

"Yeah, you're right!" Lynn said. "Be right back!"

Lynn rushed out of the entertainer sisters' room, checking on Lincoln and Ronnie Anne from the top. They were simply just talking, Lincoln must have said something funny because Ronnie Anne started laughing. That can't be good, humor charms a girl, or a girl, so if this continues they could fall in love, for real this time, and she can't allow that.

She slowly started creeping downstairs, hoping not to alert the two until she got there, mainly to overhear what they might be saying and knowing how to properly react. Though as she got close, she started hearing some strange sounds coming from the radio.

"Moo! Moo!" That sounded like Sid's voice. She had no idea why this girl was Mooing.

Lincoln checked his walkie-talkie. "Is that you Sid?"

"Good, you got my secret code, you gotta help, there's a giant rat in here!" Sid shouted.

"A what!?" Lincoln shouted in disbelief. "Dang it Lana!" He placed the walkie down. "Be right back!"

"Uh, shouldn't I come too?" Ronnie Anne asked. "Sid's my friend after all."

"Too risky, I don't think your brother would want you near a rat," Lincoln said, rushing up the stairs, not noticing Lynn behind the couch.

"Like I've never seen a rat before, I live in an apartment building!" Ronnie Anne said.

"You've never seen rats like Lana's," Lynn said, getting Ronnie Anne's attention. "Sup Ronalda?"

"Did you just call me 'Ronalda'? Only my mom calls me that," Ronnie Anne said.

"Well it's a nice name, hope you don't mind if I use it," Lynn said.

Ronnie Anne looked somewhat annoyed, "Uh, I'd actually rather you-"

"So Ronalda," Lynn interrupted, much to Ronnie Anne's annoyance. "What's life in the city like?"

"Fine..." Ronnie Anne said. "Just fine."

"Just fine huh? Good, very good to hear," Lynn said, much to Ronnie Anne's confusion. "Any new friends?"

"You just saw one," Ronnie Anne said. "Sid, she's upstairs with your sisters, who are apparently trying to endanger her health."

"Oh they would never do that, not on purpose at least," Lynn said, getting some concern from Ronnie Anne, wondering if her friend should be near those girls. Even she felt uncomfortable coming here half the time. "But what about other friends? Made any of those?"

"Yeah I have a few friends back home," Ronnie Anne said, still kind of confused by Lynn's questions.

"That's nice," Lynn said, sitting down next to the girl. "Have any that you seem to especially like?"

Ronnie Anne furrowed her brow, "Where are you going with this?"

"Just asking, girl to girl, see Ronalda, I like you, you're the sister I wish I had," Lynn said. "You're tough, you don't take anyone's baloney, and you're never afraid to speak your mind. So I just want to make sure you find someone who can appreciate that part of your personality."

"Yeah, I-" Ronnie Anne stopped a moment, then glared at the jock. "Hey, are you trying to play matchmaker or something? Trying to set your little brother up with a date?"

"No, of course not," Lynn said. "I mean, not with you. I know that my brother isn't your type and I would never force romance between you two."

"Uh, not my type? Where are you getting this from?" Ronnie Anne asked.

"Hey you had a chance to date my brother, then you blew it, you choose to Friend Zone him," Lynn said. "I mean, I don't blame you, he's not really the most exciting guy to be around."

"Hey! Lincoln's a great guy! He's my best friend and I enjoy spending time with him!" Ronnie Anne said.

"Hey I never said he can't be your friend, I just think you're way out of his League," Lynn said, placing her arm around Ronnie Anne. "You need someone who can meet your needs, someone tougher, always ready to stand their ground. Someone who can match you in strength, power and looks, you get what I mean?"

"Lynn..." Ronnie Anne said, taking the jock's hand off her shoulder. "Hate to say this, but I'm not into you."

"What? No, I'm not talking about me!" Lynn said. "I'm talking about one of your friends!"

"Why are you so curious!? What's going on Lynn!?" Ronnie Anne asked.

Before this could continue, Lincoln had come downstairs with Sid, holding the girl by her hand as he led her away from the chaos.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have let you go upstairs without me," Lincoln said. "This house is way too chaotic."

"I'm fine...nothing I can't handle," Sid said. "Man, I've never seen teeth that big on a rat, I'll never complain about the apartment rats again!"

"Maybe you should stay downstairs for now, it'll calm you down," Lincoln said, making his way to the couch before noticing Lynn. "Oh, Lynn, didn't expect to see you down here."

Lynn noticed Lincoln holding Sid's hand, so being the good sister she thinks she is, got off and seperated their hands. "I was just leaving."

As Lynn went upstairs, Lincoln and Sid sat down together on the couch, both of them quite confused.

"Uh, what happened while I was upstairs?" Lincoln asked.

"Nothing, just a really weird conversation," Ronnie Anne said. "Hey, is your sister...alright in the head?"

"Which one? Honestly most of them seem to have a few screws loose," Lincoln said. "Anyway I think it's better if Sid stays down here with us."

"What happened anyway?" Ronnie Anne asked.

"A big ugly rat that one of his sisters has as a pet jumped on me, I thought it was gonna eat me or something!" Sid said. "Thankfully Lincoln rushed in and pulled the sucker off me and made his sister put him in a crate. That's what I call bravery!" Sid then turned her attention to Lincoln. "Dude, you're officially my hero as of today."

"Oh, it's nothing," Lincoln said. "But, if you really feel that way, you can just call me 'Ace'."

"Ace? Oh like Ace Savvy, you're a comic book fan?" Sid asked.

"I have an almost complete collection of Ace Savvy Gear," Lincoln said. "He's my idol, if I could I would be a superhero just like him."

"Well you're off to a good start," Sid said. "So...any chance we can play each other in that game now?"

"I don't mind," Lincoln said, then turned to Ronnie Anne. "You don't mind do you?"

"It's all good, besides I'm tired of whooping your butt anyway, so I want to see someone else have a chance at that honor," Ronnie Anne teased.

"Hey I let you win!" Lincoln said.

"Tch, yeah, ok dude," Ronnie Anne said, sitting back while Lincoln set up the game.

Later on it was time for everyone to leave, starting with the Santiago/Casagrande group.

"Bye Ace, it was fun playing you, sorry I kept winning!" Sid said.

"Don't worry, I let you win!" Lincoln insisted.

"Pfft, sure Lincoln, see you tomorrow!" Ronnie Anne said.

"Bye now..." Lori said, waving good-bye. "See you on the trip tomorrow! It's gonna be a blast!"

"See ya then babe!" Bobby said.

"Bye Lori," Carlotta said, then gestured to her phone, letting Lori know what to do later.

Then it was Stella's turn to leave, though before doing so, she turned her attention to Lincoln, "Well I should go home too."

"Sorry we didn't get to hang out today, but I'm sure you had a good time with Luna and Luan," Lincoln said.

"Yeah, I did," Stella said, looking aside. "Well, see you tomorrow." She brought Lincoln in for a hug, this one much more affectionate than usual as she held him really close and rubbed the back of his head.

Lincoln felt somewhat strange during this hug, lately she's gotten more and more gentle, like if she just relishes his presence. He slowly returned the hug himself, bringing her in close.

Unfortunately this moment was interrupted by Lori as she pulled Stella off, "Well it's been nice seeing you, but it's late, so bye." She lightly pushed Stella out the door and closed it immediately.

Stella wasn't sure what to make of this, she even seemed kind of annoyed that Lori did that. After today she knows why, this was to set Lincoln up with Ronnie Anne. Now she wonders why Lori doesn't even seem to like her, wondering if it is her, maybe she's not pretty enough for her brother, maybe Lori just doesn't like Stella at all, maybe she did try too hard to be nice, only to annoy the other sister.

Stella felt a tear coming to her eye, though did her best to hold back her emotions. She can't let herself cry over this, it's not over yet.

As she walked down the path, she heard a car honk. She looked up to see the car that Bobby went into, driven by what Stella believes to be his mother. "Hey, pardon me for asking, you're one of Lincoln's friends right? Or at least friends with one of his sisters?"

"Um, both actually," Stella said. "I'm friends with a few of the Loud Siblings."

"It's getting late, you want me to drive you home? We can make room in the back," Maria offered.

Stella kind of wanted to , but she wasn't comfortable being in the car with Ronnie Anne, didn't help that she could see the tomboy glaring at her slightly. "No thanks, I appreciate it but I have to stop off someplace first and I don't want to send you out of your way."

"Are you sure? I don't mind," Maria said.

"I really appreciate it Mrs. Santiago, but I'll be fine," Stella said.

"Well as long as you'll be safe, are you coming to Dairy Land too?" Maria asked.

"Yeah, I'll be there," Stella said.

"Well I'll see you tomorrow then," Maria said, rolling up the windows. "Get home safely."

"Bye," Stella said, waving at the car, then making her way toward the direction of Flip's. She wasn't making it up, she did have someplace to go before going home, she really needed a Flippie to reduce this stress.

"Man, what a day," Lori said, about to go upstairs when she noticed an annoyed Lincoln. "What?"

Lincoln looked kind of annoyed, "Lori! What was that about?"

"Like I said, it was late and I'm sure her parents want her to get home," Lori said.

"Ugh, Lori, why are you so mean to Stella lately!?" Lincoln asked.

"What? I'm not mean to Stella," Lori insisted.

"Lori, since earlier this week all you've done was mistreat her in some way," Lincoln said. "You never greeted her, you always ignore her, when you do talk to her it's usually in a smart mouth or condescending tone. You're hurting her feelings Lori, you need to knock it off!"

"Come on, is that really upsetting her that much?" Lori asked. "I think you're just overreacting."

"Over-" Lincoln rubbed his temples aggressively, he was close to losing his temper. "Lori, you are in no position to say that anyone is overreacting, you're the Queen of Overreacting!"

"Watch it twerp, unless you want your underwear to be pried out of your butt with pliers!" Lori warned.

Lincoln put his hands up in surrender, "Fine, talking to you is like talking to air anyway, I'm going upstairs."

Lincoln stomped off, leaving Lori in a huff. "Stupid kid, I'm doing this for him, all for his happiness. But how does he react? Like this! So what if I barely talk to Stella, or that I barely acknowledge her, or that I say certain...things...about..." Lori started to feel a twinge of guilt, realizing her brother's point before..."No," Lori shook her head. "I've come too far to give up now, besides it's gonna work out in the end. Lincoln will finally be with Ronnie Anne, and I can finally ensure my Happily...I mean his Happily Ever After..." Lori sighed in worry and frustration. "I hope I'm doing the right thing here."

Back upstairs, Lynn had gathered all the sisters except Lori in Luna and Luan's room, "Alright, we're all here, so let's plan."

"Oh, are we planning another birthday party!?" Leni asked. "Are we still getting the twins that-"

"Not a birthday plan!" Lynn shouted. "And don't spoil the surprise!"

"Hey I don't mind the spoilers," Lola said.

"Can it!" Lynn said. "Focus, tomorrow is the Dairy Land Trip, Lori's gonna go through extremes to get Lincoln and Ronnie Anne to start dating, we can't allow that."

"I'm in full agreement," Lisa said. "Fortunately Lucy has caught some details of their plan from the vents, which she had to leave once Lori started getting suspicious."

"Their plan is to set up a series of romantic activities for Lincoln and Ronnie Anne, culminating in The Tunnel of Love ride," Lucy said. "While at the same time, doing everything they can to make Stella look bad, maybe even make her feel insecure."

"That's way harsh," Luna said.

"Didn't know Lori had it in her," Lynn said. "But we can do better, we gotta remind Lincoln just how much of a bad seed Ronnie Anne is, we gotta remind him that she's not the type for him, who knows when she could go back to her bully attitude!"

"Let's find different ways to annoy her!" Lana said.

"Yeah, and show how unladylike she is!" Lola said.

"Um, guys..." Leni said, trying to get their attention. "Maybe we don't need to be that-"

"I say we get her to hit Stella!" Lynn said, getting a gasp from the sisters.

"We're not doing that!" Luna said.

"Come on, if she hits Stella, Lincoln will hate her and then he'll feel bad for Stella and fall in love with her instead," Lynn insisted.

"I don't want Stella to get hurt," Luan said. "We're not doing that plan!"

"Ugh, fine...I'll try not to let that happen then," Lynn said, slight emphasis on 'try'."

"Don't do anything stupid Lynn," Luna said. "We're just trying to convince little bro that Ronnie Anne ain't right for him."

"Why does Lori even want them together?" Lana asked.

"Duh, because she's the little sister of her boyfriend," Lola said.

"Maybe we can break up Lori and Bobby then, that way she'll have little motivation," Lynn said. "I mean, remember when we thought he was cheating on her, maybe-"

"We're NOT doing that either!" Luna said. "Bobby hasn't done anything wrong, we don't need to be breaking his heart!"

"Yeah, Bobby's a really sweet guy, I don't want to do something that will hurt him or make him look bad," Leni said.

"Might I suggest we just keep an eye out for whatever Lori's planning and simply countering it?" Lisa said. "We can still make plans, but we can only focus on Stella rather than just making Ronnie Anne look bad. Focus on the positives than the negatives."

"Pretty hard in this family," Lynn said.

"Yeah no kidding," Luna replied. "Look let's just agree on Lisa's plan alright? Good, now let's end this meeting before Lori gets suspicious."

"Meeting adjourned then," Lynn said, making her way to her room. "Lucy, you gonna-" She noticed her gothic sister making her way to Lincoln's room. "Of course, soon she'll be back."

A big day was ahead for them, for it was the big moment, Lincoln would either pick Ronnie Anne, or Stella, at least that's their perceived notion. Both sides were gonna go hard tomorrow, only time would tell if it would be worth it in the end.


	10. Catastophe

It was finally time, the day in which a decision would be made. Who will Lincoln Loud date, either his old friend Ronnie Anne, or his new friend Stella.

It was decided that everyone would meet up at Dairy Land, so the Loud Parents would be driving their kids, Maria would be driving her son, her daughter, her daughter's friend and her niece, Clyde would be driven there by his dads and Stella would be dropped off by her parents as well.

"Alright kids, remember we will be picking you up at Sunset," Lynn Sr said, the one driving Vanzilla. "Have fun, but please behave, don't cause too much commotion, people start to talk and I swear a lot of other parents keep giving me the stink eye."

"Don't pay them any mind pops, they're just a bunch of haters," Lynn Jr said.

"Be that as it may..." Rita interjected. "Also keep in mind that you're with friends, you don't want to cause trouble for them."

"To be fair, it's Bobby's family and Clyde, they're pretty much used to us," Lynn Jr said.

"Don't forget Stella, she's gonna be there too," Lola added.

"Oh, inviting Stella huh, sure Ronnie Anne won't get jealous son?" Lynn Sr asked, much to Lincoln's annoyance.

"Dad, they're just friends! They're not gonna get jealous of each other!" Lincoln insisted.

"Well you know how girls can be son," Lynn Sr absent-mindedly said, before remembering that his wife and ten daughters were also in the car, and were clearly not happy with the patriarch's choice of words.

"Gee honey, how can girls be?" Rita asked, glaring at her now nervous husband.

"Just the greatest thing a man can have in his life?" Lynn Sr said, hoping that removed some of the tension. While the girls knew he was just trying to avoid their wrath, they decided not to press it any further.

"Lincoln, don't worry about what your father says," Rita told her son. "Just have fun, I'm sure what's what Stella and Ronnie Anne want to do."

"Just make sure you spend a lot of time with Ronnie Anne," Lori said. "She hasn't seen you in a while, and I'm sure she really misses your company."

"But don't neglect Stella," Lynn Jr added. "You don't want her to feel second best to a girl you hardly see."

"Well Lincoln and Ronnie Anne were friends first, so it'd be understandable if he mostly wanted to spend time with her," Lori added.

"But Lincoln and Stella are friends now, so she kind of deserves just as much, if not more priority," Lynn Jr replied.

"So if you haven't seen a friend in a while you would just ignore them for a friend you see everyday!?" Lori asked.

"Would you treat a friend you see all the time like second to a friend that can't be around as often!?" Lynn Jr asked back.

"Girls, enough!" Rita warned. "Lincoln can make time for both girls, I'm certain it won't be difficult for him, especially since he always manages to find a way to divide his time between ten sisters."

"I mean, why not just hang out with both of them at the same time, then Ronnie Anne and Stella can be friends, wouldn't that be a nice treat for them?" Lynn Sr asked.

"Well, yeah it would actually," Lincoln said.

"That's the spirit son, plus having two girls phone numbers can really boost your cool-factor with other kids," Lynn Sr said, shifting his eyebrows.

"Dad..." Lincoln said, starting to get frustrated again.

"Sorry, couldn't help it, my son's turning into the same stud I was at a young age, so proud," Lynn Sr said.

Rita facepalmed at her husband's boastfulness, hoping it won't fully rub off on her little man. Thankfully the family had finally arrived to drop off the kids, seeing that the Santiago group was also at the park, Maria having just dropped off her own group.

"Here come the Louds," Maria said, then turned to her kids. "Now all of you behave, call me if you have any trouble."

"We'll be fine tia," Carlotta insisted. "Why don't you go treat yourself to something nice, relax for the day."

"Actually Mrs. Loud and I are gonna go to a spa, she says there's one that can make your stress and anxiety disappear like magic, which must explain how she's able to handle raising eleven kids," Maria said.

"I still can't believe that Lincoln has that many sisters, I can barely handle having one," Sid said. "That dude's a legend."

"Well his sisters aren't so bad once you get to know them," Bobby said. "Granted not many of them really talk to me, except Leni, but she can't do it much because Lori gets jealous." Bobby chuckled a bit, "She's so cute when she's jealous though."

"Huh, interesting dynamic you have there," Ronnie Anne said, just staring pitifully at her older brother.

The Loud siblings and Rita made their way over just as Lynn Sr, after saying his good-byes, began to drive off.

"Hey Boo-Boo Bear," Lori said, greeting her boyfriend with a hug. "How was your room?"

"Could have been better," Bobby said. "The bed was too stiff, the water was too cold and I swear I saw a family of roaches."

"Cool," Lana said, getting a grossed out reaction from the kids.

"I slept just fine," Ronnie Anne said. "Even with Sid kicking me in her sleep."

"Really sorry Ronnie Anne, but I kept having nightmares about that giant rat from yesterday," Sid said.

"Aw, it's not like Bitey was gonna do anything bad to you," Lana said. "Sometimes he's just too friendly."

"We can be friends, just between two sides of a cage," Sid said. "But it's fine, thanks to my new best buddy Lincoln, or should I call you, Ace?"

"Ace?" Lynn asked. "You mean like Ace Savvy?" She turned to her younger brother, "You made her call you Ace!?"

"No, I just suggested it, and she went with the idea," Lincoln said.

Sid wrapped her arm around Lincoln's neck, "Your brother's a cool guy, real take charge attitude and super confident in his position as the only boy in a family of sisters."

"It's nothing really, just requires a lot of patience and understanding, plus my sisters can be very cool once you get to know them," Lincoln said.

"Yeah, we are, aren't we?" Lynn said, casually removing Sid's arm from around Lincoln's neck. "We're the best sisters a guy can ask for."

Sid found that strange, that's actually the second time she prevented contact between the two. Sid's guess is that Lynn is just being overprotective of her younger brother, while an admirable trait, it's going to cause some trouble later on.

"Alright, we just need to wait for Clyde and we can all go in," Lori said.

"And Stella," Luna reminded. "Can't forget her."

"Oh right, Stella," Lori said, non-caring like. "Well let's hope she doesn't take too long."

"She'll be here any moment, she just texted me that she's on her way," Lincoln said, holding out his phone.

"Oh, so you have her phone number?" Lori asked, somewhat suspiciously.

"Uh, yeah? I have all my friends' phone numbers," Lincoln said. "Are you being weird again?"

"Hey! Who are you calling-" Lori stopped her tirade when she remembered that her mother was nearby, not to mention all her sisters as well as her boyfriend and his family was also present. "I mean...no, of course not, silly little brother..."

This garnered a few strange looks for the girl, though luckily for her, they didn't last long as another car pulled up, with Clyde stepping out.

"Thanks dads, I'll call you when I'm done here," Clyde said.

"We'll be waiting," Howard said. "Have fun!"

"And try to avoid the rides that aggravate your nausea, don't want to have an upset stomach before bedtime again," Harold reminded.

"I'll be careful, bye!" Clyde said, waving at his fathers as they drove off.

"Hey Clyde!" Lincoln greeted as his friend made his way over.

"Hey Lincoln, hey Loud sisters," Clyde greeted, then eyed the oldest. "Hello Lori, looking pretty as usual."

Lori playfully rolled her eyes, "Save the charm for the girls in your grade Clyde."

"Sup McBride?" Ronnie Anne greeted.

"Hey Ronnie Anne, wow it's been a while," Clyde said, then turned to her older brother, scowling at his rival. "Bobby..."

"Yo, Clydesdale, how you been?" Bobby said, oblivious to Clyde's displeasure of seeing him.

"Just fine..." Clyde answered, then noticed two others he didn't recognize. "Um, do I know those girls?"

"Oh, no you haven't met them yet," Bobby said, then gestured to the older girl first. "This is my cousin Carlotta." He then gestured to the younger girl, "And that's Ronnie Anne's best friend Sid." He then gestured to Clyde, "Girls, meet Clyde, Lincoln's best friend."

"Nice to meet you girls," Clyde said.

"Same here," Sid said. "So, Lincoln's best friend huh? Guess we're part of the best friends team. How long have you known him?"

"Six years," Clyde said. "How about you and Ronnie Anne?"

"A few weeks, but I say we clicked pretty well," Sid said, wrapping her arm around her friend. "LIke two peas in a pie."

"Uh, don't you mean 'pod'?" Ronnie Anne asked.

"Huh, that does make more sense," Sid said, tapping her chin.

"Well Clyde's here," Lynn said. "Now we just need our good friend Stella." Lynn turned to her brother, "Yo Stinkin', got an ETA for her?"

Lincoln rolled his eyes at the nickname/insult, it didn't help that Ronnie Anne and Sid were chuckling a bit. "She just said she's on her way, she didn't give me an estimate."

"Well text her and tell her to hurry up if she's gonna come, I don't think any of us are gonna wait long for her," Lori said.

"I have no problem waiting," Luan interjected.

"Same here, I'm all good," Luna said.

"And I'm not going in until she comes, which she's going to," Lincoln said. "You can wait five minutes, no different than waiting in line for the bathroom every morning, at least no one has a full bladder."

"Oh dang, forgot about the bathroom thing," Sid said. "Man, with so many sisters, I bet it takes forever, especially the older girls with their make up, and blow drying, and shampooing, that must really suck."

"Hey, nothing wrong with a girl wanting to look nice," Carlotta said. "Just wait, soon it's gonna happen with you."

"Ugh, no way, me and Ronnie Anne are gonna skip that nonsense, we got enough natural good looks to not spend three months in a bathroom everyday," Sid said, somewhat offending the Loud Sisters. The then turned to her friend. "Ain't that right bff?"

"Uh, yeah, sure," Ronnie Anne said, not really caring all that much.

"See, me and Ronnie Anne see eye to eye, like real besties," Sid said.

"Just like me and Lincoln, hey you two got a friendship name?" Clyde asked.

"A what?" Sid wondered. "Friendship name?"

"Yeah, your names combined," Clyde said. "Me and Lincoln are Clincoln McLoud."

"Whoa, that actually sounds cool," Sid said, then turned to Ronnie Anne. "What should we call ourselves? Sidnnie Anne Changtiago?

"We'll work on it," Ronnie Anne said.

Lori checked her watch, "What's taking Stella so long, if she doesn't hurry, we're going in without her."

"Hey relax babe, we got time," Bobby said. "We can wait a few extra minutes."

"We won't have to, she's right there," Lincoln said, gesturing to the girl whom harbors a secret crush on him. Not too far off Stella was seen stepping out of a car.

"Remember to call me when you and your friends are ready to come home," Stella's mother said.

"I will," Stella said.

"And be careful on the rides, I heard they can be very intense," Stella's mother said.

"I'll be fine, Lincoln's been here before, I'll just follow his suggestions," Stella said.

Before her mother attempted to pull away, she gave her daughter one last look, "So, you and Lincoln, is it really just a friendship?

"Mom..." Stella said, getting flustered.

"Right, sorry dear, a mother just wonders sometimes," Stella's mother said, pulling away. "Bye, have fun."

"Bye mom..." Stella said, rolling her eyes a bit before walking toward the group of friends. "Hi everyone, I'm not late am I?"

"No you're good," Bobby said. "We just got here ourselves, ready for some Dairy Land fun?"

"I sure am," Stella said, stopping near Lincoln. "I'm always happy to be with friends."

"And we're happy to have you Stella," Luna said, approaching her young friend and placing her arm around her shoulder. "Ready to rock this park." She then leaned in to whisper, "And empty your heart?"

Stella blushed upon hearing Luna's words, thankful no one else could hear. "Y-yeah, I am."

"Great, let's march to our glory," Luna said, leading her friend into the park with Lincoln following after them, then everyone else, leaving only Lori and Carlotta in the back.

"Alright mom, we're going in," Lori said.

"We'll see you later tia, have fun," Carlotta said.

"We will, and please keep an eye out for your brother and sisters Lori," Rita said.

"Carlotta, help Lori out and make sure Ronnie Anne and Bobby stay out of trouble too," Maria said.

"And keep an eye out for Clyde and Stella as well," Rita added.

"But enjoy yourselves, we'll be here when the park closes, or you can call us if you're done early," Maria said.

"We will mom," Lori said, waving bye as the two mothers left. Once they were gone, Lori turned to Carlotta, "Ready to do this?"

"Totally, we gotta get your brother and my cousin to spend as much time as possble today before sending them on the Tunnel of Love," Carlotta said.

"And try to keep Stella away long enough for that to happen," Lori said.

"Right, and you said she has her own little weakness right?" Carlotta asked.

"Insecurities, a girl's greatest flaw," Lori said. "At her age, her insecurities should be at an all time high, plus something tells me that her nice girl act is just that, an act. She's got some hidden dark side to her, I just know it."

"Alright, let's put this plan into motion," Carlotta said, walking into the park with Lori.

Once inside the park, everyone started awing at the rides, most of them at least, already trying to figure out which one to go on first.

"Let's go on the whirligig!" Lana said.

"Ew no, last time you puked everywhere," Lola said.

"Uh yeah, that's half the fun," Lana pointed out.

"We can try the Toilet Bowl ride," Clyde said, pointing to the attraction.

"That looks kind of gnarly," Luna said. "Let's do it!"

"Come on now, Ronnie Anne and her family are our guests. we should consider their ideas as well," Lori reminded.

"Hey I'm good either way," Ronnie Anne said. "I'll honestly try all the rides."

"That's my girl," Sid said. "Leave no ride unridden!"

"No ride unridden indeed," Lori said. "Alright Ronnie Anne, why don't you have first pick?"

"Um...how about that ride?" Ronnie Anne asked, gesturing to the bull ride. "That looks fun."

Stella turned her attention to the ride, then saw a boy she recognized from school getting flung off, painfully landing far from the machine.

"Flat Tire's gonna feel that one later," Lincoln said.

"Uh...may I make a suggestion?" Stella asked.

"No," Lori bluntly said, then earned a glare from her sisters.

Even Bobby looked taken back. "Babe, that was kind of harsh."

Lori sighed in annoyance, "Ugh, fine, what?"

"Maybe we can stop by the petting zoo?" Stella suggested.

"Uh, Stella," Lana said, getting her attention. "I like how you think, but that's more of a wind down activity."

"If you wanna find a less intense ride that's fine, I can take you to one," Luna said. "I mean, not like we all have to travel together."

"That's actually a great idea Luna," Lori said. "Alright, we'll split into two groups. Me, Bobby, Carlotta, Ronnie Anne and Lincoln can make one group, you can take the rest of our sisters, as well as Clyde and Stella."

"What? I'm not agreeing to that!" Luna said.

"Ugh, fine, I'll take Lily too," Lori said, picking up her baby sister.

"That's not what I meant," Luna said. "Since Stella is Lincoln's friend, don't you think she should be with him?"

"Ronnie Anne is also Lincoln's friend, besides that's why Clyde's with you, since he's her friend as well," Lori pointed out. "Unless Stella wants to try out the rides that Ronnie Anne picks out."

Luna turned to Stella, leaning in to whisper, "You ok with that? I can still find another way to make this work."

"That's alright, I'll go along with this," Stella replied, then spoke aloud to Lori, "Alright, I'll try Ronnie Anne's rides."

"That's great, but if you feel overwhelmed then feel free to go someplace else," Lori said, then smirked down at her. "Or, you can go home too."

Stella felt uneasy, she could swear that Lori was out to get her or something, "I'll be fine, I mean, it's all good fun, isn't it?"

"Sure, whatever you say Stella," Lori said. "Now let's go ride a bull."

Stella followed the group toward the ride, still feeling a sense of uncertainty around Lori. Luan placed her hand on the shoulder of the young girl, hoping to put her at ease.

"It's just a normal ride, I think you can handle it," Luan said. "And if you can't, just tell the guy you want to stop, there's no shame in that."

"I hope not," Stella said, walking towards the ride, still feeling a sense of dread.

Once there, the ride had just opened up as another kid was flung from the machine, freaking Stella out a bit more.

"Is that ride even safe?" Stella asked.

"It's fine, I've been on it a bunch of times," Lana reassured. "The worse you can get is a scraped knee."

"Yeah, it's nothing, here I'll show you," Lynn said, getting on the bull. "Alright, full power mode baby!"

The ride began and Lynn had a great start, maintaining her balance as the machine attempted to fling her off. Of course Lynn was enjoying every moment of this, embracing the whole challenge of the mechanical cow.

"Wow, she's good," Stella said.

"Of course, Lynn's pretty talented when it comes to anything athletic," Clyde said.

Sid seemed to enjoy this show, "Looks like you're gonna have competition, ay Ronnie Anne?" Upon getting no answer, she turned to her friend, "Ronnie Anne?" She noticed that Ronnie Anne was somewhat glaring at Stella, not making it obvious, more of a side eye glare. "Yo! Ronnie Anne!"

That seemed to spook Ronnie Anne," Huh?" She turned to her friend, "Oh, sorry Sid, guess my mind was elsewhere."

"You alright there? You looked kind of mad," Sid said.

"Huh? I'm not mad," Ronnie Anne insisted.

"Then why did you look so annoyed? I'm not talking your usual annoyed look when something bugs you, you were just glaring at that Stella girl, she do something to you?" Sid asked.

"It's nothing, don't worry about it," Ronnie Anne said.

Sid knew it wasn't 'nothing', but she also knew that Ronnie Anne could be stubborn, so instead of pressing the issue, she decided to ask again later when it looked like Ronnie Anne would be more willing to talk.

Lynn finished her ride, falling off after a little over two minutes, "Dang, hoped to stay on longer." She turned her attention to Ronnie Anne, "You wanna try tough girl? This was your idea after all."

"Yeah I got no problem going next," Ronnie Anne said, approaching the ride and stepping on. "Give me your best shot!"

As requested, the ride came to a quick start, the mechanical cow attempting to toss Ronnie Anne off it's back, but the tomboy wasn't gonna give up that easily, she held on tightly, not giving in one bit.

"Go Ronnie Anne!" Sid cheered. "You got this girl!"

"Wow, she's amazing," Lincoln commented.

"Isn't she?" Lori asked. "She's quite the girl I would say."

Luna narrowed her eyes at her oldest sister, then turned to Stella, "It's probably not as hard as everyone's making it seem, I'm sure the other kids that got thrown off were just trying too hard to look cool or something, you got this."

"Right, sure," Stella said, still unsure about this situation. "I'll do my best."

Within a few seconds, Ronnie Anne was tossed from the bull, but still did very well, lasting close to a minute.

"Alright Stells, ready to make your mark?" Lynn said, dragging the poor nervous girl toward the ride. "Show this thing what you're made of!"

"Um, alright," Stella said, climbing onto the mechanical cow.

"Yo! Crank this thing to it's max!" Lynn said, exiting the room.

Stella freaked out upon hearing Lynn's suggestion, "Um, maybe not all the way to the-" Her plea was halted when the machine started moving around like crazy, the poor girl screaming in terror.

"Whoa, look at her go!" Lynn said. "She's screaming in excitement!"

"That sounds like excitement to you!?" Luan asked, then called out to the person managing the ride. "Hey! Turn that thing down before she-"

"AAAHHHH!" Stella had been flung from the mechanical cow to the corner of the booth.

"Stella!" Luna, Luan and Lincoln shouted in worry, the three running to check on their friend.

"Whoa, she flew pretty far," Lynn complimented.

Lincoln helped up his friend, "Stella, are you ok? You're not hurt are you?"

"I'm fine, it's nothing," Stella said, rubbing her arm in pain. "I can shake it off."

"Make sure you're not bruised or anything," Luan said. "That ride's pretty intense, I wouldn't dairy go on it." Luan chuckled a bit, "Sorry, it just came to me."

"Don't be, it was clever," Stella said.

"Yo Stells!" Lynn said, making her way over to the girl, "You alright there? That was one heck of a spill you took!"

"I'm fine, Lynn," Stella said, then muttered. "No thanks to you."

"Whelp, better luck next time," Lynn said. "Unless you wanna try again, I'm sure you've got a feel for it by now."

"How about we find something else," Stella suggested. "We don't wanna spend too much time at the same attraction."

"Yeah, let's try Lana's suggestion from earlier, I wanna hit the whirligig," Lynn said, then called to the others. "Who's up for some spinnage!?"

"I am NOT sitting next to Lana!" Lola said. "She can find someone else to ride with, maybe Lucy."

"Hard pass," Lucy said.

"I can sit next to her, that way if either of us throw up, we'll make a contest out of it, who had the most puke," Lynn said.

Stella almost felt like puking herself when she heard that, this girl was insane.

"Alright, Whirligig it is then," Lori said, then turned to Stella. "At least, for those who can take it."

Stella again felt somewhat uncomfortable by Lori's gaze, "I think I'll be fine."

"Sweet, let's go," Lynn said, "Yo Lans, ready to hit your favorite ride?" She got no response, as the six year old mechanic was currently on the wild bull ride, doing very well.

"Come on! Is this the highest it goes!?" Lana asked, fairing quite well.

"That girl's really adventurous," Sid commented.

"Alright, we'll just wait for her to finish, shouldn't take that long," Lynn said.

Five minutes later, Lana was still somehow going strong on the machine, to the shock and amazement of everyone in her party.

"Well she already far surpassed my record," Ronnie Anne said.

Lori tapped her foot impatiently, wanting to get a move on, this was stalling her plans, "Lana don't you think you've had enough!? There are other rides we wanna go on!"

Lana hopped off the machine, adjusting her hat afterwards, "Yeah, don't wanna spend all day on there, besides the fun was wearing off." She made her way out of the room, "Let's go spin til we puke!"

"Or, we can not," Stella said.

"Hey if the ride bothers you, no one says you have to go on, Lincoln can just go on with Ronnie Anne," Lori said.

"Or Clyde, since he's here too you know," Luna said.

"Right, Clyde," Lori said, then turned her attention to Sid. "Unless another sweet young girl wants to sit with Clyde as well, so Ronnie Anne can spend time with her friend that she hasn't seen in a while."

Sid looked around, seeing who Lori was talking about, until she realized she's the sweet girl Lori mentioned, "Oh me? Uh, sure I guess."

"Great, Lincoln's best friend and Ronnie Anne's best friend, such a perfect match," Lori said.

"Is she trying to play matchmaker for Clyde now or something?" Lynn asked.

"What's this about matchmaking?" She heard her friend Margo say. She turned to see her best friend along with her Roller Derby teammate, Polly Pain. "Sup Lynn-Sanity?"

"Hey Lynn," Polly greeted.

"Good, you're both here," Lynn said. "Just in time, I could really use your help."

"Why what's up?" Margo asked.

"Yeah, you mentioned something about Lincoln and dating," Polly said. "Does he need another date somewhere? Because I'm all for it if he needs one."

"No, it's not that," Lynn said. "Hey wait, weren't you dating one of his friends?"

"You mean Rusty?" Polly asked. "Not exactly, I mean we had fun at the dance and all, but I kind of lost interest after a while, not to mention he seems to like checking out other girls, so I don't think he's ready for any type of commitment. Your brother though, he looks like he's the right guy for a girl."

"...Alright, I'll discuss this crush you've seen to develop on my brother later, but the point is that there actually is a girl I'm trying to set him up with," Lynn said. "Or rather, me and my sisters."

"Doesn't he already have a girlfriend?" Margo asked. "You know, that Stella girl."

"Well they want to be together, but right now we're having some trouble," Lynn said. "My oldest sister Lori called in her boyfriend from Great Lakes. She's trying to set Lincoln up with his little sister Ronnie Anne."

"Uh, why would she do that if he's already dating Stella?" Margo asked. "Or wants to."

"Because she's very controlling, that's why," Lynn said. "That and she's probably just trying to make her boyfriend happy without considering anyone else, I mean it's not the first time she put her boyfriend over us. I like Bobby, he's a really nice guy and perfect for Lori, but there comes a time where you need priorities, trying to force my brother into a relationship is so not cool." Lynn then gestured to Stella, "So we're gonna do everything in our power to make sure Lincoln goes with Stella."

"Um, wouldn't that be the same thing your sister's doing with that Ronnie Anne girl?" Polly asked.

"N-no! The difference is that Lincoln obviously likes Stella, but Lori won't let him be in love with her, we're helping Lincoln make the right choice here," Lynn said. "Plus all my other sisters like Stella too, so that clearly makes her the better girl."

"Uh...if you say so," Polly said, still unsure. "Just promise you know what you're doing, I'd hate to see Lincoln get hurt or something."

"Have faith Polly, Lynn knows what she's doing," Margo said. "I mean if there's one thing she loves more than winning, it's her little brother. So if she can come up with great plays to win a game, she can definitely help her little brother."

Lynn blushed a little at Margo's comments, "Come on Margo, don't say sappy stuff about me."

"Right, sorry little Miss Tough Girl," Margo joked. "So what's the plan?"

"Hey Lynn!" Lori called as she took her seat with Bobby. "You going on or not!?"

"Yeah, I need a partner!" Lana said. "Well I technically don't, but still!"

"Be right there Lans!" Lynn said, then turned to her friends, "You two come on as well."

As everyone took their seat, Luna couldn't help but notice something, "Uh, I think three kids can fit on these seats."

"Yeah, so Stella can sit with Lincoln!" Luan pointed out.

"That sounds great," Lincoln said. "Wanna join us Stella?"

As Stella thought about it, she couldn't help but notice Ronnie Anne's glare again, feeling just a bit intimidated by the city girl. Somehow she couldn't help but wonder if Ronnie Anne would intentionally make the ride spin fast or something, and cause her to vomit.

She couldn't risk looking like a fool in front of Lincoln, so she stepped back, "Um, that's fine, I'll give Lincoln and Ronnie Anne some time to themselves."

"Really? I don't mind," Lincoln said. "Ronnie Anne wouldn't either."

"Yeah, come join us," Ronnie Anne said, almost menacingly. "Not like it has to be one or the other or anything, we can coexist."

Stella was even more sure she didn't want to be near Ronnie Anne now, "No, I insist, because I uh..." She went over to grab Luan, "I kind of want to be with Luan, plus I don't want to put a damper on your fun."

"Uh, I wasn't planning on getting on this ride, but if you really want me next to you, then alright, I'll get on with you," Luan said.

Luan sat down with Stella with everyone else taking their seats, Lynn with Lana, Lori with Bobby, Lincoln with Ronnie Anne, Clyde with Sid and Margo with Polly.

"I got the guy to make this go fast," Bobby said. "Think the others would mind?"

"Wow you really like this ride fast, don't you? What are you friends with the guy operating this?" Lori said.

"Not really, I just like when the ride does fast," Bobby said.

"Well I'm sure no one else will mind, after all, it's just a ride," Lori said.

The ride began, starting out a bit slow before slowly cranking up. While many of the riders felt fine about it, Lynn and Lana really enjoying it, same with Lincoln and Ronnie Anne, Stella started to feel a bit queasy.

"You alright there Stella?" Luan asked. "You're looking a little green, feeling envious of someone?"

"Heh, clever," Stella said, trying to smile. "Seriously, this ride is going kind of fast."

"Now that you mention it, it's never been this fast," Luan said, then called out to the operator. "Hey! Can you slow this ride down! We're gonna get sick!"

Her plea fell on deaf ears, they were all moving way too fast for anyone to properly hear her. Of all the happy screaming kids on the ride, Stella was the sole girl who really wasn't enjoying it much, and of course Luan wasn't having much fun seeing her friend being miserable. Luan simple rubbed Stella's back, hoping to soothe her for the duration of the ride.

Fortunately it didn't last much longer, the ride came to a complete stop and everyone got off, though not before the sounds of puking was heard.

"Ha! I got more than you sis!" Lana boasted.

"Nice one, you're come a long way my young apprentice, but I'll get you next time," Lynn said. This was too gross for the others to hear, especially Stella who was trying to keep her lunch down. "Hey! Is that a meatball!? Did you eat my sub!?"

"Uh, that's something else, I swear," Lana said. "Though, kind of want that back."

"Oh God," Stella said, trying to keep it in her body.

"Lana! Don't!" Lincoln scolded. "I'll get you something to eat!"

"What's wrong with that girl?" Sid said, passing by.

"You get used to it," Clyde assured.

"Yeah, I doubt it," Sid commented. "Wonder if this Ronnie Anne barely talks about Lincoln's sisters?"

"Hey his sisters are cool," Clyde insisted. "Sure they're a bit odd, but that's part of their charm."

"If you say so," Sid said.

"You can even ask Stella, she and Lincoln's sisters have gotten really close this oast week," Clyde said.

"Are those two dating?" Sid asked. "Lincoln and Stella? Is there anything between them?"

"Well he did have a crush on her, we all did, but now she's just a friend, a great one of ours too," Clyde said.

"Huh...interesting," Sid said. "Hey, does Lincoln talk about Ronnie Anne at all?"

"Yeah, he does," Clyde said. "He really missed her when she left, thankfully he seemed to move past it, meeting Stella really helped, almost like filling a void in his life. Stella of course is no Ronnie Anne though, I mean she didn't hide her good nature through pranks. Ronnie Anne's a nice girl but Stella is just a bit more approachable, speaking from personal experience at least."

That statement caused some surprise for Sid, "Dang..."

"Well I should go help Lincoln check on Lana, he could use the assistance," Clyde said, making his way over to his friend.

Sid wasn't sure what to make of what she heard, it sounds like Lincoln may have indeed had feelings for Ronnie Anne, though those feelings might be gone. "Not sure if Ronnie Anne's gonna like that. Wonder if I should tell her?"

"I already heard," Ronnie Anne said, having just walked past Sid.

"Ronnie Anne? Weren't you just with Lincoln?" Sid asked.

"He went to check on his gross little sister, I came to see how you were feeling, then heard some interesting tidbits from McBride," Ronnie Anne said. "So Lincoln was trying to replace me with that Stella girl, more than that, apparently she's an upgrade because she's nice goody-two shoes who loves spending time with Lincolns' family!"

"To be fair, I think she was a bit grossed out by Lincoln's puking sisters," Sid said.

"Well I don't need to be in anyone's good graces, not Lincoln's sisters or his lame friends," Ronnie Anne said.

"Come on, aren't you overreacting a bit?" Sid asked. "Lincoln still considers you one of his friends, I mean hasn't he still been friendly to you?"

"Well now it's starting to feel hollow," Ronnie Anne said. "I'll get to the bottom of this, I'm not some item that could be easily replaced, honestly what does Stella have that I don't?"

"Look, don't worry about Stella, just work things out with Lincoln," Sid said. "He's a swell guy, don't give up on him so easily."

"Come on Ronnie Anne, we're going to the next ride!" Lori said. "It's a roller coaster, sounds fun right? You can even sit next to Lincoln again."

"I honestly don't care about sitting next to him," Ronnie Anne said. "I'll sit next to Sid."

"Huh? Why what happened!?" Lori asked. "Lincoln didn't do or say anything stupid on the whirligig did he? Because I can easily straighten him out!"

"Look don't worry about it, I just don't want to right with Lincoln, that's all," Ronnie Anne said. "Let's go Sid."

As Ronnie Anne started to leave, Lori pulled Sid aside, "What's going on!?"

"She kind of overheard something that Clyde kid said, that Lincoln used to miss Ronnie Anne until Stella came along and filled an empty void," Sid said.

"Dang it, this isn't good," Lori said, then turned to Carlotta. "We gotta move the plan along, let's get them to the Tunnel of Love."

"It's too early in the day, if we do this too soon it might not work as well," Carlotta said.

"Dang it Carlotta, the love life of my brother and your cousin are at stake in this!" Lori said.

"Just chill a moment girl, remember there's other ways to go about this," Carlotta said. "Ronnie Anne's probably just a little steamed right now, she'll cool off, but we gotta keep Lincoln and Stella apart, which means you gotta amp up your game on that, make her feel so insecure that she'll want to go home or something."

"Right...it's that simple," Lori said. "Alright, I'll-"

"Um, can I say something?" Sid interjected. "This kind of sounds, really mean. I mean I want Lincoln and Ronnie Anne to get together too, but I don't think we should resort to bullying this girl, I mean it's not like she's intentionally coming between Lincoln and Ronnie Anne, she just likes spending time with Lincoln. I can't blame her, he's a really nice guy, really good looking too."

"Of course he's good looking, he's my brother, we got the genes," Lori said.

"My point is that I think we're going too far with this, I don't want to be mean to that girl," Sid said.

"Hey, you either help us or stay out of our way," Carlotta said.

"Excuse me? Carlotta you're better than this! I know you care a lot about Ronnie Anne but bullying!?" Sid asked.

"Think, if this were Adelaide, wouldn't you do anything you could to help her?" Carlotta asked.

"Honestly, not to this extent, I'd like my sister to not think this is how to get things in life," Sid said. "She's already bratty as it is, I'm not gonna make it worse."

"Bratty? She's a perfect little angel," Carlotta said.

"Well yeah, you're not her older sister, she won't annoy you," Sid said. "Again I give Lincoln credit for dealing with five little sisters, with another five older sisters to boot."

"Look, just buzz off if you're not gonna help, I don't want you getting in our way!" Lori said.

Sid glared hard at Lori, "You know what, to heck with this, you're on your own then!"

As Sid stomped off, Carlotta shook her head in shame, "That stupid girl, I knew I shouldn't have included her."

"Hey, Carlotta?" Lori said, getting the other teen's attention. "We are doing the right thing, aren't we?"

"Of course we are," Carlotta insisted. "Look don't worry about what Sid said, just think about how happy Lincoln and Ronnie Anne will be, and how happy it will make Bobby too! He and Lincoln are already pretty close, this will seal the deal on their friendship."

"I know, but..." Lori tried to find the words, though fortunately Carlotta was somewhat empathetic to her.

"Look, like her or not, Stella's not a bad looking kid, she'll find someone else, and Lincoln will be happier with Ronnie Anne," Carlotta said. "And in like five years or something, you really think anyone would care? They're kids, Stella would just brush it off as a childhood crush or something. Who knows, maybe she can get with Clyde, maybe get him off your back? That could be your next thing, so this way you'll at least be making it up to her and she'll be happy too."

"Yeah, you're right," Lori said. "Alright, let's get to this."

The group had arrived at the roller coaster, everyone was checking to see if they met the height requirements for the ride. Of course many of the older kids were able to ride, as well as Lana, who cheated by wearing makeshift stilts that the employees somehow didn't notice.

Stella had just checked herself, relieved that she met the requirements, when Lori decided to interject with a comment. "Not surprised you passed Stella, I mean, you are pretty tall for your age. You're about as tall as Luna, and she's fifteen."

"Uh, yeah, I guess," Stella said.

"You sure you're eleven? You do seem a but older than that, I mean you're taller that Lynn, and she's two years older than you," Carlotta said.

"Uh, good genes I guess?" Stella said.

"Well I'm sure you'll grow up just fine, at this rate you might be much taller than either of my parents, I just hope you can fit through doors without ducking," Lori said. "That sounds like a literal pain."

"Come on, I'm not that tall, I think I'm a normal height for my age," Stella said.

"Sure, if being like a foot taller than your classmates is normal," Lori said. "Hey maybe one day you can be a meteorologist, you'll be able to see what the weather will be like for a whole week without some satellite."

Stella started to feel a bit insecure, subconsciously hunching down, trying to make herself seem shorter. "I...that's not my goal in life though."

"Well it might be your only option at this rate," Carlotta said, smirking down a bit. "It's fine, after all the world needs tall girls, makes the normal sized girls feel better about themselves at least."

Stella continued to hunch over, starting to feel really strange. She never thought about her height, she thought she was perfectly fine, she's seen other kids as tall as her, mostly boys though, but tall girls should be normal.

Thankfully, she didn't have to endure this much longer, once she heard the voice of her comedic friend. "Hey, what's happening here!?"

"Yeah, what gives?" Came the rocker sister.

Luan walked over to Stella along with Luna, glaring at the older teens, "What's this about her height!? Are you two making tall jokes, because that's just low."

Lori waited for Luan to chuckle and ask if anyone got her pun, but it sounds like she was being serious. Either that wasn't an intentional pun or Luan just naturally makes puns despite her emotions.

"We're just pointing out that she's quite tall, I didn't think it was a big deal," Lori said. "I mean, tall girls are pretty rare, I thought it'd make her feel special."

"Well it's not, you're starting to upset her," Luna said. "Come on Stella, just ignore them and come on the ride."

"Um...maybe I should sit this one out," Stella said. "I'm suddenly not feeling up to it."

"You sure? I mean I could use a buddy to ride with," Luna said.

"I'm sure...besides I'm still feeling a little queasy from before, I'll catch up to you later," Stella said quickly making her way off the ride.

"Stella..." Luna said out of worry, then glared at her sister and friend. "You're terrible!"

"Not my fault she's sensitive about her height!" Lori said.

"Sure, keep making excuses, that'll work out just fine, bully," Luan said, walking off the ride with Luna.

"Wow, that wasn't very nice," Carlotta said. "But great job girl, keep this up and soon it'll be Lincoln and Ronnie Anne alone together."

"Yeah, won't be long now," Lori said. Deep down she did feel a smidge of guilt but she had to do this for her brother's sake, and especially for the sake of her own relationship.

This didn't do unnoticed by Lynn, who seemed quite furious about what Lori did. Polly also seemed somewhat annoyed, somewhat relating to Stella about the tall girl jab.

"Two can play at that game," Lynn said, let's go girls.

Down below, Stella is sitting on a bench, having been joined by Luna and Luan, the two trying to comfort the girl.

"Don't worry about Lori, she's just being insensitive, we have to put up with it all the time," Luna said.

"She does have a bad habit of not realizing what hurtful things she could be saying," Luan said.

"It's nothing girls, really," Stella said, her saddened look telling a different story. "I know there's nothing wrong with me, I mean, it's not bad that I'm a little bit taller than most kids my age, right?"

"Of course not," Luna said. "It just means there's more of you to love."

"Yeah, we still like you Stella, you're our friend," Luan said, joining Luna in sandwiching the young girl in a hug.

"Thanks girls...I just hope Lincoln doesn't care about that," Stella said.

"If he did, he wouldn't have been so eager to impress you when you first moved here," Luna said. "Besides Lincoln never judges, he's a good kid."

"He's never said anything bad about my braces, and he's had plenty of opportunity to," Luan said.

"Well you're pretty enough to make them work," Stella said, making Luan blush.

"You're pretty too Stella, but looks aren't everything, even if it seems that way at times," Luan said.

"I bet Lincoln would call you pretty even if you had a face full of acne, which let's pray never happens because it's a pain in the neck to deal with, I tell you from experience," Luna said.

Stella nodded her head, "Alright, I'll try again."

"That's the spirit love," Luna said, rocking her accent. "Let's go get you your man!"

The roller coaster ride had finished, everyone stepped off, feeling a bit queasy.

"Man, that was awesome," Sid said. "Is your head still spinning Ronnie Anne?"

"Totally, man I love roller coasters," Ronnie Anne said.

"Wow, really?" Lynn interjected. "Sure seems like you were screaming for mercy rather than fun." That got a laugh from Margo and Polly, much to the annoyance of Ronnie Anne and Sid. "With all that screaming, I thought Lola was on the ride, but even she has more guts than that."

"Yeah you'd know all about guts considering you pretty much puke out everything inside them because you can't handle a little motion," Ronnie Anne spat back, getting a high five from Sid.

"Oh-ho, we've got jokes now, another Luan, except she's not as goofy looking, and she's got braces with a scrunchie," Lynn said.

"And you constantly wear a shirt that says 'One', because you're the Number One Nimrod," Ronnie Anne said.

Lynn looked a little unhappy by that comment, "Wow, that the best you can come up with? No wonder Lincoln sent you home crying to your brother, if you suck that much at making wisecracks then you probably suck more at taking a few jokes!"

"Alright, you're starting to tick me off!" Ronnie Anne said, getting in Lynn's face.

"Ooh, careful Ronalda, don't want you crying to your brother again, just try not to get my brother roped into your crap this time!" Lynn shouted.

"How about I give you a black eye like I gave to him!? Sure didn't do much at the time did you!?" Lynn shouted.

"Come on, let's not get into a fight here," Sid said.

"Hey, leave this conversation to the big kids, little girl," Polly said.

"Don't talk that way to my friend!" Ronnie Anne warned.

"Aw, protecting your wittle friend Wonalda?" Lynn taunted.

Ronnie Anne clenched her fist hard, "I swear I'm gonna..."

"Hey! What's going on!?" Lincoln asked, making his way over.

"You're sister's being a jerk, nothing I can't handle though," Ronnie Anne said.

"More like nothing Bobby can't handle once you run off with your tail between your legs," Lynn said. "Well actually I'm pretty sure I can handle Bobby too, make it ten times worse."

"Hey, you do anything to my brother I will leave you with a swollen lip!" Ronnie Anne warned.

Before things got back, Lincoln stepped in, keeping them separated. "Come on, I don't want you two fighting each other. One of you is gonna get hurt."

"He means you're gonna get hurt, he just wants to spare your tender feelings," Lynn said.

"I'll tenderize your bones!" Ronnie Anne shouted.

"Girls, please, take a few steps back and calm yourselves," Lincoln said.

"Sure, anything for you, little bro," Lynn said, then turned to her friends. "Come on girls."

"See you at the next ride Lincoln," Polly said as she left.

"Remember, you have plenty of options, never settle," Margo said, leaving as well.

"Huh? What does that even mean?" Lincoln asked.

"Ignore them," Sid said. "Hey thanks for showing up when you did, things were gonna get pretty bad."

"What happened?" Lincoln asked.

"Sid and I were just minding our own business when Lynn came in making these stupid jokes," Ronnie Anne said. "What's her deal anyway?"

"Just ignore her next time, she has a bad tendency to say things to people to see if they get riled up, mostly to me at least," Lincoln said.

"You, Lincoln Loud, are a champion," Sid complimented.

"It's nothing, comes with being a brother," Lincoln said. "Come on, let's go to the next ride."

Everyone made their way the Toilet Bowl ride, though things were a little more tense. Ronnie Anne and Lynn kept glaring at each other while Stella kept a distance from Lori.

The ride allowed for more groups, but that didn't stop a few attempted antics, with Lori trying desperately to get Lincoln to ride with Ronnie Anne, but Lynn, being crafty, had snuck Stella into Lincoln's group, with Sid and Clyde also getting roped in by Carlotta, if to at least bring down the mood. If Lincoln doesn't ride alone with Ronnie Anne, then no one rides peacefully together.

"Gotta say, that ride's so filthy looking," Stella commented.

"Well it's a bowl, sorry it's not a castle Princess," Lori commented, much to the annoyance of Luna, Luan and Lincoln.

"Lori, be nice," Lincoln warned.

"Yeah, at least Stella handled it well, Ronnie Anne though, she looked like she wanted to puke," Lynn said.

"Only because I saw your face," Ronnie Anne said, much to Lynn's annoyance.

"Keep talking tough, I know it's just an act!" Lynn said.

"Hey! Lynn! Don't bother Ronnie Anne!" Lori warned.

"You're one to talk, or does Stella not count!?" Lynn asked.

"Can we please just move along!? Anyone have another ride in mind!?" Lincoln asked.

"How about The Milk Shaker!" Lana said, gesturing to the ride. "Perfect for getting your puke cleanly on your face."

"How can Puke and Clean be in the same sentence!?" Stella asked.

"Lana, can you even spare any more puke?" Lola asked. "You already puked twice after all, there's not much left in there."

"She's right, you'll end up dry puking, terrible feeling," Lynn said.

"Alright then, let's go to the food court so I can have food to puke out!" Lana said.

"Um...that doesn't seem sanitary," Stella pointed out.

"I'll say," Clyde said. "Also seems like a waste of food and money."

"Well I am pretty hungry myself," Lori said. "Alright let's hit the food court, hope anyone not related to me and isn't under the age of eight brought a wallet."

"I did," Bobby said, then turned to Ronnie Anne. "I can cover for you and Sid, Nini."

"You don't have to, I brought my credit card," Ronnie Anne said.

"I didn't," Sid said.

"I can cover for Sid too," Ronnie Anne said.

"Mom said that card's for emergencies, not for eating," Bobby said. "Besides if I let you pick, you're gonna get nothing but junk."

"Trying to worsen her teeth or something?" Lynn joked, much to Ronnie Anne's annoyance.

"I got something to worsen yours," Ronnie Anne said, clenching her fist.

Bobby turned to Lori, "Why is Lynn being so mean to my sister all of a sudden?"

"Oh she's not being mean, she's just messing around," Lori nervously said, then turned to her jock sister. "Right Lynn!?"

"Uh-huh," Lynn said, not caring as they all arrived at the food court.

Each of them picked out their food, mostly pizza, hamburgers and fries. Even a few corndogs were available.

"Wow Stella, that's quite a lot of food you have there," Lori commented. "I know you're tall but you should be careful what you eat, you don't want it going to the wrong places."

Stella suddenly felt self conscious again, technically all she got was a burger and some fries, but she didn't think it was that much.

"Hey, Stella's a growing girl, she's fine," Lynn said, then gestured to Ronnie Anne. "Unlike Miss needs to slim down a bit, she might be growing in all the wrong places."

"Gonna knock her teeth out, I swear," Ronnie Anne said.

"Lynn, lay off," Lori warned.

"You need to lay off Stella!" Lynn shouted.

"I'm just trying to be nice, don't want Stella gaining any more weight than she needs to," Lori said, causing Stella to stand up and leave in a huff.

"Stella wait!" Luan said, going to get Stella. "Come on, just ignore it, I mean what weight is she talking about?"

Carlotta, who happened to sneak over, had grabbed a mobile air duct and aimed it at Stella, the breeze slowly pushing up her skirt until...

"Ah!" Luan shouted, quickly keeping Stella's skirt down, though not before many had gotten a good look behind the girl.

"Ooh, not a good place to gain weight," Lori said.

Stella was now embarrassed and stormed off in shame, Luan quickly following after her.

"Lori..." Luna angrily said, then went with Luan to find Stella.

"Babe, that was kind of harsh," Bobby said. "Gotta work on your delivery."

"Sorry Bobby Boo-Boo Bear, I'll try not to let that happen again," Lori said.

Lincoln felt slightly embarrassed, that was a bit more of Stella than he expected, he would go check on her, but it might be too awkward for her now. Of course he glared angrily at his older sister, she was really getting on his nerves.

Sid got Ronnie Anne's attention, "Did you see her butt?"

"Yeah, pretty sure everyone did," Ronnie Anne said.

"Dang, lucky her right," Sid said, much to Ronnie Anne's confusion.

"Well, yeah, I guess, not that it matters," Ronnie Anne said. "Does it?"

"Hey, I can honestly say your butt's really fine too, so you got nothing to worry about," Sid said, embarrassing her friend.

"Promise you'll never say that again, ever," Ronnie Anne said, getting a sheepish smile from Sid.

Back with Stella, the girl looked even more distraught, "Maybe I should just go home! I'm gonna call my mom and have her pick me up!"

"Come on, don't leave yet," Luna pleaded. "Lori's just not thinking before she talks, she does that a lot."

"But why is she being so mean to me!?" Stella asked, trying to hold back some tears. "Does she hate me!? Did I do something bad to her!? Whatever it is I just wanna make it right, I can't handle the idea of someone hating me for something I don't even know I did!"

"You did nothing wrong Stella, Lori's just being a priss for no real reason," Luna said.

"You came to have fun, don't let her get to you," Luan said. "You're not too tall, you're not fat, your panties are cute and you don't eat too much, that's a normal meal for a girl your age!"

"I hate twice as much as that at your age, and I turned out fine," Luna said.

"Yeah well, I just don't feel as pretty as the two of you, I don't have your confidence," Stella said. "Face it, I'm no good for Lincoln, Ronnie Anne's so bold, not afraid to speak up for herself and she's way prettier than I am. Me, I'm just an outcast who can't express herself, who's only real hobby in life is dismantling electronics because I have this silly hope of working with tech!"

"Hey that's not silly, that's awesome," Luan said. "You and Lana could go into business together, she's great with electric type stuff, and other things!"

"If you figure out Electronics, you can even help me out too!" Luna said. "Maybe you can set up special effects for my gigs!"

Luan gently stroked Stella's face, "Stella, listen to me. You're a beautiful young girl, you have a caring personality and you're so much better than you think you are! Please, have confidence in yourself, because I have confidence in you."

"We both do," Luna said, patting her back. "Please, don't stop trying, you're perfect for Lincoln and you shouldn't give up on him just yet."

"By today, you have to try to confess how you feel, don't worry about Lori, or Ronnie Anne, or anyone else, just Lincoln," Luan said. "Just look him in the eyes and tell him how you feel, I bet he'll feel the same way."

"Who knows, he might even try to kiss you, he's got some experience after all," Luna said.

"Well that makes one of us, I don't think I can kiss well at all," Stella said.

"It's not that hard, I pretty much winged it with Benny," Luan said.

"And I winged it with Sam," Luna said.

"Still, what if I kiss lousy?" Stella asked. "It might make him regret picking me."

"Look, it's easy, you can even initiate it, just do like this," Luan said, then surprisingly brought Stella in for a kiss of her own, getting a wide eyed reaction from Luna. Stella couldn't believe she had been locked into a kiss with Luan, she wasn't bad either, but she also felt kind of strange. Luan broke off, smiling at the girl, "See, easy, now you try it with Lincoln."

"Uh-huh..." Stella said, somewhat dazed from her kiss with Luan, and was then sent off in Lincoln's direction.

Luna turned her attention to Luan, "Uh, what was that about?"

"Just showing her how simple a kiss is," Luan said. "Plus I've been kind of curious myself."

"Yeah but...what if Benny finds out and gets the wrong idea?" Luna asked.

"Oh come on, it's a practice kiss, not like I was cheating on Benny," Luan said. "It doesn't count if it's with another girl, unless you have a girlfriend. I'm sure Sam would be more mad at you than Benny would at me."

"...That's a bogus explaination," Luna said, getting a sigh from Luan.

"Well, just don't tell him please, I'd rather not have to explain that," Luan said. "Don't tell Lincoln either, I'm all for him and Stella together and I'm not letting Benny go."

"Hey, your secret's safe with me," Luna said. "Let's go back and make sure things go smoothly."

Back at the food court, Lori began whispering to Carlotta. "We have to start the plan now!"

"It still feels early," Carlotta said.

"Lynn's gonna ruin it for us, just get Ronnie Anne ready!" Lori said.

Carlotta shrugged it off and went to find her cousin as Lori approached Lincoln. This of course was overheard by Sid, she knew what they were going to do. After seeing how terrible Lori has treated Stella, she can't help but feel like this is wrong. Ronnie Anne shouldn't get a boyfriend like this, and she had to do the right thing, even if it meant betraying Lori and Carlotta.

Sid snuck over to the other Loud sisters, aside from Luna, Luan and Lynn, who were sitting together and talking among themselves. "Hey, girls?"

"Oh hello...Sid was it?" Leni asked.

"Yeah, I'm Sid, listen, there's something I need to tell you," Sid said. "It invovles Lincoln, Ronnie Anne and Stella."

"Is Lori starting her plan to put the two on the Tunnel of Love!?" Lana asked.

"Huh? How'd you know that?" Sid asked.

"I heard about it the other day," Lucy said. "We've been waiting for this, but it's earlier than I thought."

"I think Lynn's recent jabs at Ronnie Anne may have caused her to move it along, plus something Clyde said earlier," Sid said. "Wait, should we get Clyde for this?"

"No way, he can't handle this type of stress," Lola said. "Besides, this plan needs more of a woman's touch, no guys needed."

"Plus he's too busy engaging Bobby in a brain-freeze competition," Lucy said, gesturing to the two guys slurping their drinks fast and crying out in pain.

"Wait, are you helping us?" Leni asked.

"Yeah, I mean at first I wanted it to be Ronnie Anne, but the way that Lori's been bullying Stella made me think this was a bad idea," Sid said. "She's really hurting that girl's feelings, I can't sit back and allow that to continue."

"Good, so you're with us then," Lisa said. "Rest assure your traitorous actions toward your former allies will be put to use."

"Can you not say 'traitorous'? I'd like to think I'm making the right call here," Sid said.

"You are, don't worry about Lisa," Lola said. "We just gotta find Stella and get her to the Tunnel of Love first."

"Well we better hurry, because it looks like Lori's taking Ronnie Anne there right now!" Lola said.

"And Carlotta's leaving with Lincoln," Lisa said. "Odd, why would they do it that way?"

"Probably to make it less suspicious," Lucy said. "Besides I doubt Lincoln wanted to talk to Lori after how she treated Stella."

"Let's move quickly then," Lisa ordered, all the sisters and Sid on the move, except Lily, who Leni went back for after they left.

"Sorry Lily, almost left you, now let's go help Linky," Leni said.

"Inky! Inky!" Lily repeated, clapping a bit, much to Leni's humor.

"How adorable," Leni said, following after the other sisters.

"Yo Lynn," Polly said. "Your sisters and Ronnie Anne's friend are on the move."

"Huh? Why is Sid with them?" Lynn asked. "Ugh, they better not be betraying me! Come on, let's go!"

Lynn's group also made their move, while meanwhile Lincoln is walking with Carlotta.

"Hey where are we going Carlotta?" Lincoln asked.

"You'll see, I have a surprise for you little Linky," Carlotta said.

"A surprise, it's nothing bad right?" Lincoln asked.

"Of course not, I wouldn't do that to you," Carlotta said, playfully winking at the boy.

Ronnie Anne had a similar situation of course, with Lori, "Where are you taking me?"

"You'll see," Lori said.

"Uh, Lori, mind giving me more detail?" Ronnie Anne said.

"If I did, it would ruin the surprise," Lori stated.

Ronnie Anne felt uneasy, "Uh, am I gonna like where this is going?"

"You know I wouldn't do anything to upset you Ronnie Anne, Bobby would literally never forgive me," Lori said. "Besides this is gonna work out great for you, believe me Ronnie Anne."

Elsewhere, Sid and The Loud Sisters, sans Lynn, were rushing Stella to the Tunnel of Love.

"So Lori's on the move huh, let's crash her party!" Luna declared.

"Hurry, otherwise Lincoln will get stuck with Ronnie Anne!" Lana said. "You ready for this Stella!?"

"I think I am?" Stella said.

"Come on! Show more confidence woman!" Lola demanded.

"Uh, yes, I am!" Stella boomed.

"Let's rock on!" Luna declared, the others cheering as well.

Lori finally arrived with Ronnie Anne at the ride that would be the culmination of all her planning. "There it is Ronnie Anne."

Of course, Ronnie Anne looked less than pleased, "Tell me you're joking, I am not getting on that sappy ride."

"Come on, you'll like it, me and Bobby just love the ride," Lori said.

"Well that's you two," Ronnie Anne said. "Besides, who am I supposed to ride with? There's no one else here!"

"Come on now," Lori said, taking Ronnie Anne by the hand and leading her up to the boat. "You'll get your Prince soon my lady."

"Uh, what up with the royalty type talk?" Ronnie Anne said. "That ain't my thing Lori."

"It will be," Lori said, seeing Lincoln finally arriving with Carlotta. "Because there he is, the boy of your dreams."

Ronnie Anne turned around to face her Royal Woods friend, "Lincoln!?"

"Uh, Carlotta, why did you bring me to the Tunnel of Love?" Lincoln asked. "And why is Ronnie Anne there?"

"Because, she is your date," Carlotta said. "You know you want this Linky, you two are made for each other."

"Wait, what are you talking about!?" Lincoln asked.

Before he could get closer, Stella had run in with the various Loud sisters.

"Lincoln! Wrong girl!" Luna shouted.

"Huh?" Lincoln said, though the sisters had been running too fast and ended up colliding with him and Carlotta, aside from Luna and Luan who collided with Lori, leaving Stella to collide with Ronnie Anne, the two falling onto the boat together.

"All aboard lovebirds," The teenaged employee said, sending the ride on it's way.

"Wait! No!" Lori shouted, seeing the wrong couple going into the tunnel. "Ugh! Dang it!"

"Uh, looks like Stella got in, but with the wrong date," Luna said.

"Wow, between the earlier practice kiss and now a tunnel ride with Ronnie Anne, I hope she doesn't start edging towards girls, that might hurt Lincoln's chances if he has more rivals to compete with," Luna said.

Lori angrily stood up, glaring at the two, "You idiots! What did you do!?"

"Right a wrong!" Luna shouted. "Lincoln belongs with Stella, not Ronnie Anne!"

"Yeah, you're plans are over!" Luan said.

"Plans!?" Lincoln asked. "What plans!?"

Before anyone could answer, Lynn and her friends had finally arrived, with Bobby and Clyde, the latter two out of breath.

"I've never ran that fast," Clyde said.

"I have, but it's still not fun," Bobby added.

"Hey! Where's Stella!?" Lynn asked.

"On the Tunnel of Love," Lola said. "With Ronnie Anne."

"Huh? How' that happen?" Lynn asked.

"Aw, so my sister might get a girlfriend? That's so sweet," Bobby said. "She took more of a liking to Stella than I thought, or was it the other way around?"

"Ronnie Anne isn't there out of her own free will!" Carlotta said. "Stella got knocked into her by Lori's crazy sisters!"

"Hey! Who are you calling crazy!?" Lola shouted.

"You're the ones with this stupid plan to set Lincoln up with Ronnie Anne!" Luna said.

"Then I countered with my own plan," Lynn said. "Only I can keep up with Lori's mischievous planning, Lynn Loud Jr, master planner."

"Well your plan's ruined! And it ruined my plan, so you're nowhere near me as far as planning goes!" Lori said.

"No way, I'm a master planner," Lynn said.

"Hey listen!" Lincoln shouted, getting everyone's attention. "First off, I'm the master planner of this family, second, what plans are you talking about!?"

"Lori tried setting you up with Ronnie Anne!" Lynn said. "That's why she got Bobby to come to Royal Woods for the weekend."

"Babe, is that true?" Bobby asked.

Lori sheepishly shrugged, "Kind of...But Lynn made a plan of her own!"

"That's right, me and the other sisters were trying to set you up with Stella," Lynn said. "You can thank us later little bro."

"Thank you for what!? I told you I wasn't interested in either girl! We're just friends!" Lincoln shouted. "Gah, can't any of you let me think for myself when it comes to girls!?"

"Well statistically males lack the proper intelligence when it comes to a matter like that," Lisa said, then got an angry glare from her older brother, intimidating her and causing the little genius to retract her words. "But I'm only a little girl, what would I know? Hehe..."

"Well now it's all ruined, Ronnie Anne couldn't confess her feelings and now it's gonna be even harder getting her together with Lincoln," Lori said. "All because of that useless little skank! I wish she never showed up and ruined everything for me! What I would give to never see her again!"

"Uh, Lori?" Carlotta said, gesturing to the entrance of the tunnel. Stella, who along with Ronnie Anne had gotten off the boat, both refusing to stay on for the whole ride, had been there and heard the whole thing.

"So...you do hate me," Stella said, sadly looking down. "I knew it...Well fine, if you don't want to see me again, then you won't!" Stella wiped her eyes, "You win, I'm never going back to your house again!"

Stella had then run off, her will broken and crying a waterfall of tears. Her emotions had finally gotten to her, leaving her an emtional wreck.

"Stella!" Lincoln called out, but it was too late, she was long gone. Lincoln was mad now, he angrily turned to his oldest sister, "Ugh, you're the worst, I hate you Lori!"

That twisted Lori's heart, hearing her brother utter those words, "L-lincoln, hate's a strong word."

"Really? Because honestly, right now, IT ISN'T STRONG ENOUGH!" Lincoln shouted, then stormed off to find his friend.

Even Ronnie Anne felt pity for the girl, she was just an unwilling pawn in a game she wanted no part in. She turned her attention to her older cousin, "For the record Carlotta, I am never trusting you again!" Ronnie Anne stormed off in Lincoln's direction as well.

Lori finally felt it, the guilt and remorse of this selfish mission. She should have backed out, but her emotions got the better of her by the end, now she could only see the angry glares of her sisters and the disappointed glare of her boyfriend.

"Lori, you give love a bad name," Luna said.

Now Lori didn't know what to do, she may have lost the trust of her whole family. Lynn smiled in satisfaction, somewhat taking this as a victory.

"Don't get all smiley Lynn," Lucy said, popping beside her. "You too have sins to answer for."

"Pfft, like what?" Lynn asked.

"Oh, you'll see soon," Lucy said, backing away. "There will be consequences."

Lynn wasn't sure what Lucy had meant, but one thing she can be grateful for is that she isn't the center of glares like her oldest sister is, though she wonders how long that might last.


	11. Calming Tides

In the distance, Stella had run as far as possible away from Dairy Land, her tears never stopping. This was not a fun weekend at all, she thought she could enjoy herself, or hoped she could find a way to enjoy herself.

Yes, Lori seemed to have a grudge against her, yes Lynn had been really annoying, yes she was slightly intimidated by Ronnie Anne, but she hoped she could still enjoy spending time with her friends.

Now she doubts if she'll even have the chance to do so anymore, seeing Lincoln will be difficult if he has an older sister that doesn't even want him near her. Soon it will be hard even seeing Luna or Luan, two girls she considers her new close friends, more than that, almost like her older sisters.

Perhaps she was foolish to consider the idea of dating Lincoln, maybe this was a sign that they were just not meant to be, that maybe they're not even meant to be friends. No, she cant think like that, she doesn't want to lose Lincoln's friendship, it means way too much to her.

Stella kept going until she got tired and stopped on a bench, still letting her tears fall. The shame, humiliation and hatred she's gone through today was too much for her to handle, she didn't even know how to fix this. All she could do for the moment is wallow in her own self pity.

"Stella!?" She heard from the distance. She turned and saw Lincoln running towards her." Stella!"

"Lincoln?" Stella knew she shouldn't be surprised to see Lincoln, of course he would go to check up on her, he's just that great of a guy.

The boy stopped to catch his breath, turning his attention to his friend the moment he regained his composure, "I'm so happy I caught up to you, I was so worried."

"I'm fine Lincoln, no need worry about me," Stella insisted.

"Sorry Stella, but as my best friend, I gotta worry," Lincoln said. "Besides, what happened back there was pretty intense, I can't believe Lori would say all that, that was cold, even for her."

"Well she certainly doesn't seem to like me very much," Stella said, a tear still in her eye. "She hasn't actually been subtle about it, but hearing it out loud still stung pretty badly."

"Well, I'm here for you Stella," Lincoln said sat next to his friend, placing a hand on her shoulder. The moment he made contact though, she quickly wrapped him in the hug and started crying out loud.

"Lincoln, I really like you, and I really want to be your friend..." Stella said between sobs. "And I really enjoyed spending time with you this past week, I really felt like we've been connecting more, but after today..." Stella wiped her nose on her arm, hoping Lincoln wouldn't mind too much. "I don't know if we'll be able to keep doing that...I'm almost afraid to go back to your house now, knowing your sister absolutely despises me!"

Lincoln slowly returned the hug to Stella, gently stroking the back of her head, "Well, I'd hate it if you never came back, but, if you don't feel too comfortable in my house...then I won't make you come back. We'll find someplace else to go, it can be your house, it can be at Clyde's house, it can be the park, wherever you feel comfortable. Would that help?"

"I guess, I mean, I'll try anything if it means I get to be with you," Stella said, hugging tightly. "I just don't want our Friendship to end."

"And it won't, I promise," Lincoln said. "I care about all of my friends, and I always stand by them, whether they live here in Royal Woods or they live out in Great Lakes. All my friends mean the world to me and I never take them for granted."

"Well that's good to know," they both heard. The two turned to see the former Royal Woods girl, Ronnie Anne. "Uh sorry, did I interrupt?"

"Ronnie Anne?" Lincoln asked as Stella quickly broke away from their hug. "Did you come all this way to find me?"

"Well, I kind of got worried when I saw you run off, plus I really wanted to get away from my idiot cousin," Ronnie Anne said, somewhat scowling at the thought of her oldest cousin. "Can't believe they went through all this. Carlotta, your sister Lori...wondering if Bobby or Sid were in on this?"

"Hey you only had one sibling and a cousin to worry about, and your friend, I had ten sisters all pulling different strings," Lincoln said. "Granted only Lori was in on this plan with Lori and your family, but my other sisters, it looks like they had plans of their own."

"They did..." Stella said, looking away shyly. "I mean, I got this from Luna and Luan, but the rest of your sisters, under the leadership of Lynn, they were trying everything to make sure the two of you didn't happen because...they wanted it to be us."

"That might explain why Lynn was trying to tick me off in the park," Ronnie Anne said. "Not gonna lie, almost wanted to punch her, er no offense Lincoln."

"Hey you're not the only one," Lincoln said, eyeing Stella. "I know Lynn can be a pain in the neck at times."

"How do you live with that dude?" Ronnie Anne said, getting closer and sitting next to Lincoln. "I mean that girl, she has a really bad attitude."

"She's just overly assertive, in a way I kind of admire that about her," Lincoln said. "She's strong willed and always determined, but unfortunately she's very stubborn, which is why she never gives up." Lincoln turned his attention back to Ronnie Anne, "She didn't upset you too much, did she?"

"She was a bit annoying but it's nothing I can't handle," Ronnie Anne said. "But like I said, if she keeps running her mouth, I'm gonna make her bleed from it."

"I'll straighten her out, well I'll try to," Lincoln said. "Gotta do the same for Lori, which will be just as much of a pain." Lincoln sighed in annoyance, "That Lori, can't believe she would do...actually I can believe she would do that, she can be very self centered after all. But...I gotta make things right with her, I kind of feel bad that I told her that I hated her, I mean she can be selfish and overbearing, but she's still my sister and I know deep down is the big sister that I look up to. I know she's better than this, I just wish I knew why she went this far."

"She's got a lot to make up for, putting the two of us through this, and the way she treated your friend there," Ronnie Anne said, then focused her attention on Stella. "Hey, you've been pretty quiet these past couple of minutes, though you also look like you're an emotional wreck so I guess I'm not too surprised at your lack of conversation."

"It's been a rough day," Stella said, looking away from Ronnie Anne.

"Sounds like it," Ronnie Anne agreed. "Gotta say, for as long as I've known Lori, I've never seen her at that level. I mean, I knew she had a temper, Bobby talks about it all the time, sometimes I feel like he's afraid of her but I thought even she had her limits. Didn't realize she was that into the idea of me and Lincoln being a couple, though knowing her, it's probably to make sure she stays dating Bobby."

"Weird, Bobby can be afraid of Lori, unless it comes to you," Lincoln said. "I mean he broke up with Lori once because I accidentally made you cry."

"Hey, I wasn't crying, that was just Bobby exaggerating," Ronnie Anne said. "I was...upset, but not that upset, like a lame-o like you could ever really hurt my feelings."

"How did that come across exactly?" Stella asked.

"Well...I may have used to pick on Lincoln, but that was my way of showing affection, to show that I liked him and I thought he was kind of cool, and a little fun to mess with," Ronnie Anne said. "It's how I treat all my friends."

"Even Sid?" Lincoln asked.

"...Well maybe not so much of Sid, alright let me rephrase that, it was my old way of making friends, I'm passed that now though," Ronnie Anne said. "I'll be honest, I used to bully Lincoln a little, but not because I didn't like him, I just thought it was funny. That and maybe Bobby always talking about Lori was getting on my nerves, even to the point where he couldn't be bothered to do stuff with me anymore, so this was just a little revenge scheme."

"Oh, so you just missed your brother," Lincoln said. "But wouldn't it have been easier to tell him that and not stick gum in my hair or stuff sloppy joes down my pants?"

"Hey give me a break, that was how I vented my emotions at the time!" Ronnie Anne insisted. "Look I don't want to make excuses, I did some bad stuff and I really regret it. But that's not me anymore, I've changed, at least I hope I have. I don't want to give off that tough girl vibe anymore, I mean not to the point where kids think I'm gonna punch them or anything, just enough to get a little respect but not too much that I don't drive away my friends."

"No offense Ronnie Anne, but you still have that vibe," Stella admitted. "These last couple of days, it looked like you hated my guts, every time you would give me this sinister stare and...I thought you wanted to hurt me or something."

Lincoln turned to Ronnie Anne, very surprised at what he heard, "Is that true? Did you want to hurt her?"

Ronnie Anne shook her head, "Of course not, I wouldn't hurt one of your friends. But..." Ronnie Anne turned her attention to Stella, "Listen, Stella, I don't hate you, I don't have anything against you either...it was me, all me and my stupid insecurities."

"Huh, never heard you talk about being insecure," Lincoln said.

"Don't get used to it, I'm only saying this to right a wrong," Ronnie Anne said, then focused back on Stella. "I'm sorry if I made you feel uncomfortable, given how Lori and my cousin have been treating you, I guess me being unfriendly was the last thing you needed. I was just a little jealous, that's all."

"Jealous of what?" Lincoln asked. "Wait, does this mean you really do have a crush on me!?"

"N-no!" Ronnie Anne shouted, trying to hide her blush. "I just thought for a moment that...you were replacing me with Stella or something."

"Replacing you?" Lincoln asked, very confused, as was Stella.

Ronnie Anne sheepishly rubbed her head, "Well, it's just that, knowing that right after I moved to Great Lakes, another girl moves in to become one of your best friends, only she's more than that, she's also close with your other friends and she's close to your sisters, it doesn't just feel like a replacement, it felt like an upgrade. I mean, it doesn't help that I heard McBride say that Stella filled a void that I left behind when I moved, and that she went above and beyond just that. I thought Stella was just suppose to be a better me."

"Ronnie Anne, if that were true, then I wouldn't be video chatting with you on a regular basis," Lincoln said. "Come on, you should know better than to think I wanted to replace you."

"Yeah, you're right," Ronnie Anne said. "Sorry, I don't know what I was thinking, maybe it's just some stupid girl thing, I don't know really."

"Lincoln," Stella said, getting the boy's attention. "May I talk to Ronnie Anne alone?"

"Huh?" Lincoln looked a little surprised. "Well, sure I guess, but are you sure?"

"I'll be fine," Stella said. "I just want to get to know Ronnie Anne a bit more."

"Well, alright, I'll be over there if you need me," Lincoln said, gesturing to a nearby tree.

As Lincoln stood up and left, Stella turned her attention to Ronnie Anne, scooting closer to the girl. "So, Ronnie Anne..."

"Stella," Ronnie Anne said, encouraging her to continue.

"Tell me, what is Lincoln to you?" Stella asked.

"Huh? He's my best friend," Ronnie Anne said.

"How long has it been that way?" Stella asked.

"Few months, almost a year, wait why are you asking?" Ronnie Anne said.

"Just curious, it seems like Lincoln means a lot to you if you were worried about being replaced, which is really silly honestly," Stella said. "I have no intention of replacing you and not once has Lincoln made me feel like I was replacing anyone. He still talks about you, very fondly too, so he obviously still cares a great deal about you."

"Wow really? Um, what has he said?" Ronnie Anne asked, trying to play it cool. "Just curious..."

"He said you were a cool friend, you always liked doing fun things, and you were nice to be around," Stella said.

"Wow, what a mush," Ronnie Anne said, though had a soft smile at hearing all this.

"He did go into some...unfortunate times," Stella said. "I mean, I already knew about your bullying so..."

"Yeah, like I said, my fault, I take full responsibility for that," Ronnie Anne said. "It took me a while to feel comfortable about myself enough to just be myself."

"I'm sorry you felt that way, is there a reason for that?" Stella asked.

"It's...it's just me, don't worry about it," Ronnie Anne said. "Maybe I'm just kind of stupid, maybe my communication just sucks." Ronnie Anne muttered a bit, "Maybe I was slightly jealous of his still complete family." While she thought she spoke low enough, Stella had caught parts of it. "Point is that I've changed, obviously not enough if I made you feel intimidated. I'm really sorry about that Stella, I should have known better, my mom taught me better. Honestly if she knew I was unfriendly, she'd be really mad."

"I'm sure your mom would understand," Stella said. "Look, I forgive you Ronnie Anne, I'm certain you're not a bad kid, if Lincoln likes you then you must be great."

"He is a good judge of character, and pretty patient," Ronnie Anne said. "Helps having ten crazy sisters."

"Wow, thanks Stella, and you must be great too if you can put up with the wackiness of Lincoln's family," Ronnie Anne said. "I mean me, my brother and my mother just moved in with my aunt, uncle, grandparents and cousins a couple of months ago, so I really understand what he goes through."

"Wow, a large extended family." Stella said. "Um, if you don't mind me asking...what about your father? I mean I hate to sound like I'm prying but I did hear you mutter something about complete families."

"Funny, Sid asked me a similar question," Ronnie Anne said. "Well might as well tell you. My parents aren't together anymore, maybe that bummed me out for a while and it was probably why I was so irritable, that and a few other things I don't want to get into right now."

"Sorry to hear that," Stella said. "I mean, do you at least see him?"

"Yeah, sort of," Ronnie Anne said. "He's in Peru now, he works as a doctor. That's how my parents met, they're both into medicine and stuff. We still talk and video chat so it's not like I never see him."

"Well at least you know he still loves you," Stella said. "You're still luckier than me, I mean I just have my parents for the most part, and my grandmother. You have a large family, even if it's extended."

"Never thought about it like that," Ronnie Anne said. "Well Stella, even if you don't have a large family like me or Lincoln, you can still have a large amount of friends, me included."

Ronnie Anne held her hand out in Friendship, which Stella immediately accepted. "I'm happy to accept that."

The two were finally at peace with one another, no more tension, now they can be friends and put all the awkwardness behind them.

"So, friend to friend," Stella began. "Do you have a crush on Lincoln?"

Suddenly the awkwardness was back, "Excuse me?"

"I'm sorry, I know this sounds really random," Stella said. "But it's just been on my mind, and I do want to further understand Lori's motives."

"She's just crazy, don't think too much about it," Ronnie Anne said. "Look, I don't have a crush on Lincoln, yeah I like him and at one time I might have felt something for him, but I'm satisfied being just friends and I'd rather keep it that way. His sister is dating my brother, so if anything happened between us or between them, then things would get complicated between our families."

"Is Lori aware of that possibility?" Stella asked.

"Knowing her, if Lincoln even thought about complaining, she'd straighten him out before I'd even hear about it," Ronnie Anne said. "I don't like the idea of Lincoln feeling like he has to date me just because my brother's dating his sister, that's not a good relationship at all."

"Well, do you think he has a crush on you?" Stella asked.

"Well he keeps insisting that he doesn't, so I can't say for sure if he does," Ronnie Anne said. "Personally I hope he doesn't, like I said, it'd be too complicated for us to date and I don't want to risk ruining our friendship."

"That's understandable," Stella said. "I wouldn't want to make that same risk either."

"So, do you have a crush on Lincoln?" Ronnie Anne asked.

Stella turned away blushing, "Well..."

"Hey, I won't tell him if that's what you're worried about," Ronnie Anne said.

"The thing is, I was planning to tell him, and then you came to visit so..." Stella felt really awkward.

"Ah, maybe Lori sensed that, hence why she rushed me and Bobby over here," Ronnie Anne said. "Look, if you like Lincoln, that's cool, I say go for it."

"Really? You wouldn't mind?" Stella asked.

"No way, like I said, just like him as a friend," Ronnie Anne said. "If you like him, I'd say tell him before some other girl comes and swipes him away."

"Well...I want to, but..." Stella still had doubts.

"Don't worry about Lori or anyone else, if you do then you're gonna miss out," Ronnie Anne said. "Linc's a great guy, he understands girls pretty well and he's usually very caring. Little flawed but who isn't. Honestly he makes a great boyfriend, plus he's a real good kisser too."

Stella looked curiously at Ronnie Anne, "Did you just call him a good kisser?"

Ronnie Anne blushed a bit, "Not sure if anyone's told you but...I actually kissed Lincoln once, or rather he kissed me, it's happened twice actually. First outside of his house, then again in that French-Mexican Fusion restaurant, which funny enough, was where Lori and Bobby had their first date."

"I've heard some stories," Stella said. "So, a good kisser huh?"

"Hey I'm not longing for another kiss if that's what you're thinking," Ronnie Anne said.

"Still, you seemed to value those memories," Stella said.

"Only the second, I punched him for the first one," Ronnie Anne said, then noticed Stella's slight glare. "Not my best move I'll admit."

"Well still, if you have such a fond memory then chances are you do miss him to some extent, I'm just worried that soon you're going to realize you do like him and then you'll be miserable, assuming he wants to date me," Stella explained.

"First, he would date you, I mean you seem like a real nice girl, real pretty too, he'll totally say 'yes' to dating you," Ronnie Anne said. "Second, if on the off chance I do fall in love with him, or consider wanting to date him, keep in mind that I live pretty far away, and honestly I don't think I can handle a long distance relationship, because the sooner I'd get to see him again is if we go to the same college, and how long would that be? We finish up and go back home? There's no guarantee either of us could afford to move to a place in Great Lakes or Royal Woods once we turn Eighteen, I might not get my own place until I'm older than that. If you like Lincoln then go for it, you're both in Royal Woods, you live nearby, you can date whenever you want, don't pass this up for my sake."

"Are you absolutely certain though?" Stella asked.

Ronnie Anne groaned in annoyance, "Yes, I am. Look I care enough about Lincoln to not put him through the heartache of a long distance relationship, besides there's plenty of options for me, so it's not like Lincoln's my only hope."

"Well, that's a good point, you're really pretty, so you should be fine," Stella said.

"Appreciate that," Ronnie Anne said. "Look I can't tell the future, maybe you two won't last, I'm not wishing for that, I do hope you two find happiness but if you don't then you don't, but you need to try at least. I'm giving you my blessing Stella, don't throw it away!"

Stella thought this over and knew Ronnie Anne had a point. She did live far way and long distance relationships are hard, especially for kids their age. Plus she seems very insistent on it, "Alright, if you're ok with it Ronnie Anne...then I'll ask Lincoln out."

"You can do it right now," Ronnie Anne said, before Stella could protest, Ronnie Anne called her over. "We're done Lincoln!"

"Alright!" Lincoln said, making his way back over. "So, you two talk things out?"

"Sure did, great girl here Linc, happy to know you made a good friend, of course I'm still your best friend," Ronnie Anne said.

"Yeah, you are, and nothing will replace that," Lincoln said. "And it looks like Stella's your friend now."

"Yes, my friend, my buddy, my comrade," Ronnie Anne thought a moment. "Mi amiga!"

"Since when do you speak Spanish?" Lincoln asked. "Did your family finally teach you?"

"I'm learning still, helps having fluent relatives, maybe one day I can speak full sentences." Ronnie Anne said, patting Stella's back. "You speak any other languages?"

"Well my grandmother sometimes speaks Filipina, so I learned some from her," Stella said. "So, if I'm Ronnie Anne's amiga, then she's my kaibigan."

"Sweet, I'll have a second language buddy in you," Ronnie Anne said.

"Yeah, a second language buddy, sounds fun," Stella said.

"It does. Oh, by the way Lame-O, Stella has something she'd like to ask you," Ronnie Anne said, moving the girl up to Lincoln. "Go for it."

Stella glared slightly at Ronnie Anne, then focused back on Lincoln, "Right...so Lincoln, I wanted to know something..."

"Uh, sure, what is it?" Lincoln asked.

"Uh...uh...be right back!" Stella ran off and pulled Ronnie Anne with her, much to Lincoln's confusion.

"Uh, what just happened?" Lincoln asked.

Down near the corner, Ronnie Anne seemed quite confused, "Uh, what is it? You should be asking Lincoln out right now."

"I know, but I'm too nervous," Stella said. "What if he turns me down?"

"He won't, trust me," Ronnie Anne said. "Come on, you have it in you Stella, now go get your man! I'll be right there by your side too!"

"But...I'm having trouble wording it," Stella said. "Communication isn't my strong suit."

"Then just blurt it out," Ronnie Anne said. "The longer it takes, the more awkward it's gonna feel, just go for it girl, I believe in you."

"Wow, thanks Ronnie Anne" Stella said, walking back over with Ronnie Anne to a still confused Lincoln.

"Uh, Stella?" Lincoln greeted. "What's going-"

"Go on a date with me!" Stella shouted, then immediately covered her mouth.

Lincoln took a moment to register what she had said, "Uh...run that by me again?"

Stella took a breath, doing her best to talk normal, "I want to ask you on a date, I know it sounds sudden and out of nowhere but...I really like you Lincoln, and the more time I spent with you, the more I realized how great a guy you are. I know I said I had no interest in romance with you or any of the guys, but, you managed to change my mind." Stella took Lincoln by his hand, looking right into this eyes, "Will you be my boyfriend?"

Lincoln was madly blushing, while he did like Stella and had a crush on her, he accepted that she didn't like him back, so he never pursued it again. "Wow, I don't really know what to-"

"Just say yes!" Ronnie Anne interrupted. "Come on dude, she's really pretty, you'd be crazy to pass this up!"

"Huh, never expected you to play matchmaker for me Ronnie Anne," Lincoln said, then turned back to Stella. "If that's what you want Stella, then yeah, I'll happily be your boyfriend."

Stella had a mile wide smile after hearing that, "Really!? Oh boy, I'm so happy! I promise you Lincoln, I'll make the best girlfriend you can ask for!" Stella then brought Lincoln in for a huge kiss, one that took him by surprise.

"Dang, she really went for it," Ronnie Anne said.

Stella pulled away, blushing a bit, "Sorry, my emotions got the better of me there."

"It's fine...wow you're a great kisser, have you had practice or something?" Lincoln asked.

Stella blushed upon hearing that, "Uh...I've honestly never pulled someone in for a kiss, that was pure instinct."

"That's a weird way to word it," Ronnie Anne said, then shrugged it off. "Well, you do you."

Stella pulled Lincoln into a tight hug, "I'm so happy right now, I-" Suddenly she noticed something strange. "Uh, there's a teenage girl geeking out over there, I think it's one of the girls from the park the other day."

Lincoln turned and saw Dana texting and squealing in joy, "What a lovely kiss! Oh I've waited days to see that! So adorable! I ship you two so hard!" She ran off squealing in happiness more, much to the discomfort of the kids.

"Uh...who was that?" Ronnie Anne asked.

"That's Dana, one of Lori's friends, she's really nice," Lincoln said.

"Uh-huh..." Stella said. "Let's go back to your sisters before things get too weird."

Lincoln then joined both Stella and Ronnie Anne in the walk back to Dairy Land.

At the park itself, some time had passed. It was a tense few minutes, mostly quiet with some occasional grumbling, and some sisters talking amongst each other, usually something bad about Lori or even Lynn. Clyde had run off to find Lincoln, though he hasn't come back yet, and likely wouldn't until Lincoln had returned.

Lori herself was sitting in shock and disbelief over what her brother had said. Most of the sisters still had looks of disappointment in the oldest Loud girl. Bobby felt pretty awkward at the moment, wondering how it even came to this. Lynn still seemed smug, despite getting a few glares of her own from Lucy and Sid.

Luna had already texted her mother to come pick them up, even letting her know that there's been some trouble. "I can't believe this stunt you pulled Lori. You really hurt Stella's feelings."

"And now Lincoln hates you, Lori you better make this up to him," Luan said.

"Don't you think I realize that!?" Lori said. "I've literally never heard any of you say that to each other!"

"Because we've never crossed that line," Lynn said. "What you did today was probably the worst thing any of us could have done."

"You don't get to talk!" Lori said. "Remember Lynn, 'Bad Luck'!"

"Yeah, but notice that Lincoln never said 'I hate you' to me," Lynn said. "Because he knows deep down he can never stop loving his favorite sister."

"Can it with the 'favorite sister' *honk* already! It's really getting annoying!" Luna shouted, many thankful that a nearby car had honked to get the attention of it's party so her range wasn't that far except only to the immediate area.

"If Lily says that word, it's on you," Lynn said.

"Please I know you've said just as bad, what was that word you called Luan the other day when she played a prank on you?" Luna asked.

"Hey, you can't prove anything," Lynn said.

"Point is you're just as bad as Lori right now!" Luna said.

"Uh, I didn't make Ronnie Anne cry," Lynn said. "Then again I did insult her like Lincoln once did so who knows?"

"Any reason you were being so mean to my sister?" Bobby asked, clearly displeased.

"Any reason your cousin was being a jerk to my friend?" Lynn asked.

"Looks, you're fault here!" Luan said. "Lori for dragging Ronnie Anne out here and forcing a romance with Lincoln and hurting Stella's feelings, and Lynn for making things worse with Ronnie Anne, we told you not do stuff like that!"

"You said 'Don't pick a fight', which I didn't," Lynn said.

"Yeah you did, you and Ronnie Anne nearly got into a fight!" Sid said. "You started insulting her and looked ready to fight her!"

"That was more self-defense," Lynn said. "I was just doing to her what Lori was doing to Stella."

"That doesn't make it right Lynn," Luan said. "Ronnie Anne was just as much of a pawn in this too."

"Hey she wasn't exactly being friendly to Stella either," Lynn insisted. "Point is that I didn't do anything Lori didn't."

"Do you not understand what we're trying to say!?" Luna asked. "That doesn't make what you did right! All you did was do the same bad stuff Lori did! Whether Ronnie Anne was friendly or not is irrelevant! Maybe you made it worse by insulting her and pushing Lincoln towards Stella!"

"Hey! You all were!" Lynn said. "We were a team!"

Luna groaned in annoyance, "I never should have went with your crazy plan! We should have just talked to Lincoln first or something."

"What would that have done?" Lynn asked. "We had to overpower Lori somehow, this was the only way Stella stood a chance. So in the end, all this happened because of Lori!"

Luna groaned in annoyance, then turned back to Lori, "You got anything to say?"

Lori shamefully shook her head, "No, I don't. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea."

Carlotta felt some guilt for this, after all, she's the one who insisted on this, "Hey look, Lori's not entirely at fault here, I may have convinced her that if Lincoln didn't date Ronnie Anne, than Bobby be disappointed in her and dump her."

"What!?" Bobby said. "Cuz, why would you say something like that!?"

"Well, you know how much our family likes the idea of Lincoln dating Ronnie Anne, even you liked it!" Carlotta said.

"Well yeah, I'd like to see Little bro hook up with my baby sis..." Bobby took a moment to think that over. "Wrong choice of words, but the point is that even if I thought they'd look cute together, Lincoln not dating Ronnie Anne isn't a dealbreaker. I genuinely thought Lincoln might have been dating that Stella girl! You really think I would be that shallow to expect Lincoln to want to date Ronnie Anne? That should be their choice!"

"Exactly," Leni chimed in. "We need to let Linky think for himself about these things, he's smarter about this than we give him credit for."

"But...I guess in the end, this is my fault," Bobby admitted, much to everyone's surprise.

"Why would this be your fault?" Sid asked.

"Because I think I know why Lori freaked out," Bobby said, then turned to his girlfriend. "Babe, is this because of the time we broke up?"

"Huh?" Lori asked, looking to her boyfriend.

"Broke up?" Sid asked. "When was this?"

"Many months ago, Ronnie Anne came home crying because Lincoln had said some, not nice things to her," Bobby said. "So, in a fit of rage, I broke up with Lori. I couldn't stand knowing my girlfriend's little brother had upset my baby sister. But looking back, I did not handle that properly. Maybe I should have had Lori explain to Lincoln not to say such mean things, though Ronnie Anne did admit to me that she used to pick on Lincoln, so I guess it's understanble that he got frustrated." Bobby turned to Lori, "I'm sorry babe, I shouldn't have done that to you, and the fact that it still bothers you shows that I must be a really lousy boyfriend to make you worry so much."

"What? No, Bobby you're an amazing boyfriend," Lori said. "Why do you think I do everything I can to keep us together?"

"Well I can be better," Bobby said. "And I will be, so Lori, as disappointed as I am in you, just know that I still care about you, just promise me that if you feel worried about something, you'll come to me, we'll work something out. Lincoln can date whoever he wants, that goes for all your siblings. Though I don't think you had any plans to match Lola or Lana up with Carl, or Lily with Carlitos."

"Actually Lily and Carlitos would be adorable," Lori said.

"Lori!" the other sisters replied.

"But only if she wants it," Lori said with a nervous smile.

"Well glad that's been taken care of," Luna said. "Though we still need to go and find Lincoln, Stella and Ronnie Anne."

"Oh no need," Polly said, gesturing to the front of the park. "They're right over there."

Everyone turned to see the three kids making their way back into the park. The Loud sisters sans Lori and Lynn rushed over to check on their brother and Stella, with the twins in particular hugging the tall girl

"You feeling better Stella?" Lola asked.

"Want me to get you a snack? I got money from my allowance, I'll spend it on you if you'd like," Lana said.

"That's fine, I'm feeling much better, thanks," Stella said, then found herself being hugged by Luan.

"I'm here for you Stella, I hope my sister hasn't upset you too much," Luan said, almost in tears.

"I'm fine, I talked things over with Lincoln and Ronnie Anne, everything's good," Stella said, having returned the hug.

"Wait really?" Luna asked, turning to Ronnie Anne, who was being greeted by Sid and Bobby.

"Yeah, Stella and I are friends now, it's all good," Ronnie Anne said.

"That's a relief," Bobby said, then turned his attention to Stella. "Hey, how are you holding up?"

"I'm fine Bobby, don't worry about me," Stella said.

"Good to know," Bobby said, walking over and kneeling before the girl. "Listen, I know my girlfriend hurt your feelings, but she only did it because of a mistake I once made. I understand if you're mad but I hope you can put this behind you someday."

"I'll need time," Stella said, slightly glaring at Lori. "But I've learned not to hold grudges, so in time I think I can forgive her."

"You do what you gotta do Stella," Bobby said, pulling her in for a hug. "You're a nice kid, I can see why you're Lincoln's friend."

"Thanks Bobby, you're really nice too," Stella said as Bobby pulled away.

Lori just looked over at the group, not sure what to do next. Suddenly Leni turned her attention to her, then eye gestured to Stella, using her eyes and thumbs as emphases. Lori understood what Leni was saying, so she decided to take a chance.

"Hey Stella," Lori said, approaching Stella, who seemed quite cautious of her.

"Lori..." Stella replied, obviously not trusting the older girl.

This was of course awkward, but Lori had to make things right. So she got on her knee and looked Stella in the eye, "I'm...really sorry for what I said, it was very mean of me."

"Well yeah, you really hurt my feelings Lori, I wanted to be friends with all of you, I don't know why you hate me so much," Stella said, still pretty tense.

"I don't hate you, and I know I said some mean things, but I swear I meant none of it," Lori said. "I was just frustrated and..." Lori sighed in sadness, "Look, if you choose to hate me that's fine, I won't blame you. But please, don't stop coming over. My brother really likes you, my sisters really like you, I'll do my best to never say anything mean to you again. Deal?"

Stella looked away, thinking things over. Since she's going to be dating Lincoln, of course she'd have to come over, plus she'll miss the other sisters if she doesn't. "Deal...but just so you know, it's going to be a while before I fully forgive you."

"I understand that," Lori said, then got up, though not before turning to her brother. "And Lincoln..."

"Stop, I know what you're gonna say," Lincoln said. "You're really sorry, I know that. Don't worry, I can forgive you too Lori, I mean if I can forgive Lynn for the bad luck thing, I can forgive you for this too. Just please, don't ever hurt any of my friends again."

"I won't," Lori said.

"And I'm sorry for telling you that I hated you," Lincoln said. "I don't hate you, I love you a lot, but please let me handle my own love problems, if I do need help, I promise I'll come to you."

Lori felt relieved to know her brother truly didn't hate her, "Sure thing, baby brother."

"Carlotta," Ronnie Anne said, getting her cousin's attention. "That goes for you too, don't ever pull a stunt like this again."

"I won't, I'm really sorry cuz," Carlotta said.

"It's fine, you know I can't stay mad at family, but you are gonna have to earn my trust back," Ronnie Anne said.

"Don't worry, I can handle that, no problem," Carlotta boasted.

"Well, that's been taken care of at least," Luna said. "Good to know Stella and Ronnie Anne are friends now."

"And Lincoln, we promise to leave the choice up to you, no matter who you choose, we'll accept," Luan said.

"Well I already chose Stella," Lincoln said.

"Yeah, I asked Lincoln out and he said 'yes'," Stella said. "Lincoln and I are gonna be boyfriend and girlfriend!"

"What!?" Lori shouted in disbelief, then got several angry glares in her direction. "I mean...yay, so happy, good for you! I totally love this, you're going to make such a great, great couple, and-"

"You're overdoing it," Lincoln said.

"Right...sorry," Lori sheepishly said.

"But on the plus side," Luna said, she suddenly began screaming in joy, with the other sisters also screaming and cheering in happiness.

"Our brother's got a girlfriend!" Most of them shouted, very loudly too.

"That means I won!" Lynn shouted, then got angry glares of her own. "What?"

"You know what Lynn!?" Stella said, getting in her face. "This isn't your win, it's mine! More importantly, it's Lincoln's! Honestly you were the reason I almost didn't want to come back as well because of how annoying, overbearing and judgmental you are! Next time you wanna help Lincoln with girls, DON'T! Because honestly, your social skills really suck!"

Lynn looked pretty taken back, "But, Stells-"

"AND STOP CALLING ME 'STELLS'! You're not one of my friends! You want to be my friend, earn it! Like your other sisters did!" Stella shouted, then turned back to Lincoln. "Finally got that off my chest."

That brought a satisfying grin to the other sisters, and especially to Lincoln.

Sometime later, after Margo and Polly went home, Rita and Maria had of course returned, needless to say, the two mothers clearly unhappy.

"Lori, I am vey disappointed in you young lady," Rita scolded. "Forcing your brother into a relationship is NOT an ok thing to do." Rita turned to Lynn, "As for you young lady, I don't condone any of your actions either!"

"What? What did I do!?" Lynn asked.

"Bothering Stella to date Lincoln, saying mean things to Ronnie Anne, plus your way of telling your other sisters about Lucy's secret hobby," Rita turned to Lucy, "By the way, your father and I have figured out a fair punishment about that as well."

"Yes mother," Lucy said.

"You're lucky your brother wanted us to go easy on you, I do not condone lying young lady," Rita said, then turned to Lori and Lynn, "And I don't condone manipulation! When we get home your father and I are gonna have a nice word with you two!"

"That goes for you too Carlotta," Maria said. "Your parents won't be happy when they find out what you put Ronnie Anne through today."

"Sorry Tia," Carlotta said.

"You'll have plenty of time for apologies later, we're going home," Maria said.

"Wait, I thought we were gonna stay two days?" Carlotta asked.

"Well your parents are gonna want to know about this now and I don't think they'll condone what you did and want to take immediate action," Maria said. "Good thing I didn't pay for two days at the motel."

"Wait, Ronnie Anne has to go home?" Stella asked.

Maria kneeled down to her, "Sorry mija, I'm afraid so. I know it's bad, it sounds like you two made friends with each other. I really appreciate that and I promise she'll come back soon."

"Alright Mrs. Santiago," Stella said.

Maria turned to Lincoln, "Thank you for being such a good friend to my daughter Lincoln."

"Of course, she's very special to me," Lincoln said, placing his arm around Ronnie Anne. "She's my best friend after all."

"Come on, don't get sappy Lincoln," Ronnie Anne said, trying to hide her blush.

"Don't be so embarrassed Ronalda," Maria said. "You're lucky to have a friend like Lincoln."

"Yeah, I know," Ronnie Anne said, smirking a bit. "He's a great guy."

"He sure is," Sid said, placing her arm around Lincoln. "Sorry we didn't spend more time together, maybe next time."

"Yeah, I'd like that," Lincoln said.

Bobby and Lori said their good-byes to each other as well.

"Take care babe," Bobby said. "And remember, I'll always listen if you need me to."

"I know, thanks Boo-Boo Bear," Lori said.

Bobby turned to Rita, "It's not my place to ask you, but please take it easy on Lori, I feel like I should have prevented this somehow."

"I appreciate your concern Bobby, but Lori's old enough to know this isn't acceptable, regardless I will be fair," Rita said. "But don't feel shy about coming back soon, you know you're always welcome."

"Thanks Mrs. R," Bobby said, then turned to Lincoln. "See ya little bro!"

"Peace out Bobby!" Lincoln said.

The Santiago Family had gotten into the car and began driving off, saying one final good-bye before leaving to the city.

"So...You sure you have no regrets?" Sid asked, turning to Ronnie Anne. "I mean, Lincoln's a great guy, I could probably fall for him myself."

"Honestly, sometimes I wish I could have gotten that chance," Ronnie Anne admitted. "But it wasn't right for me to make Lincoln wait. I'd rather at least one of us be happy than both of us longing for affection."

Sid wrapped her arm around Ronnie Anne, "Well I'm here for you if you need me."

"Thanks," Ronnie Anne said, doing the same. "You mean a lot to me Sid, thanks for sticking by me through this."

"What are friends for?" Sid said with a friendly wink as the two chuckled slightly on the way back home.

Rita turned to the rest of the sisters, "None of you are entirely off the hook either, you still played a part in this and your father will have something to say."

"Yes mom," The other sisters said. Times like this Rita's happy she takes regular spa days. She never expects to stay stress free, but happily accepts a reset button to start fresh.

Stella felt some pity for them, but a mother's gotta do her job. Speaking of moms, her mother was starting to pull up. "There's my ride," Stella turned to Lincoln. "So, see you tomorrow?"

"You got it," Lincoln said. He then leaned in to give Stella the same kiss she gave him earlier, which she happily accepted.

"I'm gonna like this," Stella said, then turned to go greet her mother, "Bye Lincoln."

"Bye Stella," Lincoln said, seeing his girlfriend going to her mother's car. During this he felt Luna place her arms around him, smirking herself. "You've got quite the girl there little bro."

"I'm just surprised she wanted to date me," Lincoln said.

"Don't be, any girl would want to be someone you Love," Luna said.

"Yeah, you're a great guy Lincoln," Luan said. "There's a reason you have so many great friends."

"Well I...wait speaking of friends, where's Clyde?" Lincoln asked.

Miles away...

"Lincoln!? Ronnie Anne!? Stella!?" Clyde shouted, desperately trying to find the three as he walked tiredly down the streets of Royal Woods.

Back with The Louds...

"Guess he went home early," Lincoln said. "He never liked awkward tensions."

"Right, maybe his dads picked him up?" Luan said, mostly hoping since she along with the others completely forgot about Clyde.

"Hey, Luna, Luan, I really appreciate how nice you've been to Stella, it means a lot," Lincoln said.

"You got it bro," Luna said.

"Yeah, Stella's a nice girl, and we're glad she's finally learning to love you," Luan said.

"Yeah, she is really nice, I feel so lucky," Lincoln said. Suddenly both Luna and Luan each kissed one of Lincoln's cheeks, much to his embarrassment. "H-hey!"

"Just remember, in the end, we love you more," Luna said.

"No girls will love you like your sisters love you," Luan said

Lincoln chuckled a bit, he knew more than anyone how close their family was. He feels lucky, he's got great sisters, great friends and a cute girlfriend, things were looking great.

"So...happy you won?" Lori asked Lynn.

"Honestly, no," Lynn said. "Stella's not as nice as I thought she was." She looked up at Lori, "Still wish it was Ronnie Anne?"

"Kind of..." Lori admitted. "But I will accept Lincoln's choice."

Lynn of course had her doubts, but for the time being, kept her mouth shut, knowing there could be consequences.

For now things were looking good for Lincoln, how things would go now is uncertain, but he just had to be ready for it.

* * *

**Finally the end. It's been fun making this, hopefully the ending was satisfying, even some things feel open ended, but that's what imagination is for. Now whether or not I do a sequel or move on to another story is up in the air, but it's possible I may continue this. That depends if I get anymore good ideas. Until then, thank you all for reading and I really appreciate your support.**


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